Guardians of Ga'Hoole: Owls Of Glaux
by Airman0007 - Zarko Elkholm
Summary: -Being rewritten. Check the profile for the new version.-
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything from Guardians of Ga'Hoole Kathryn Lasky does.**

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><p>On an island, far away from the owl kingdoms, a barn owl was regaining conscious on the sandy beach.<p>

"Ugh, what happened?" The owl mumbled as he stood up, he took in his surroundings and clearly did not know anything of his location. He looked out at the sea and began to stare out into the distance of the sunset. "Where am I?"

He took a step forward but groaned in pain and instantly stopped. He looked at his back where the pain had come from and gasped. He had a scar lining straight through his backbone. It looked like it was recent, but the owl seemed to remember what had happened.

"I… how? I was killed by that great gray! How could I have survived a slash through my back! I felt it break myself… so how…?

He shook his head and decided to head on into the forest of the island to search for food and anyone who could tell him where he was. He had not seen any food what so ever, no voles, no rats, no rabbit, and if he didn't see them he would have been able to hear them. He was left starving on an island he knew nothing about!

He landed on a branch of a tree and took a moment to breath. He was completely confused; no food, no owls, nothing! Where in Glaux name was he-

Just at that moment, he saw another barn owl land on a branch a few wingspans in front of him. The other barn owl obviously had no idea of his presence. The first barn owl flew up a branch and decided to ask.

"Excuse me, sir, but do you happen to know where we are?" He asked curiously. The other barn owl jumped at first but then began to turn around.

"No, actually, and who might you b-" He froze still in shock as he saw the one who had spoken to him, as did the first one, who was the first one to speak out of the shock.

"Uglamore?"

"Y- Your- your pureness? " Uglamore said as the two locked eyes with each other. Uglamore suddenly got into a battle stance and glared furiously at Kludd. "Even though I thought you were dead, I will never serve you! It was wrong of me to join the Pure Ones! So now I will send you back to Hagsmire where you belong!"

"Wait! Uglamore!"

It was too late. Uglamore charged into Kludd while he was taking off. They were instantly locked talon-to-talon. They spun around in the air until Kludd was slammed into a tree. Uglamore raised a talon to strike but Kludd kicked him in the chest, causing them both to fall to the ground. Kludd was the first to get up shortly followed by Uglamore, who was about to charge again.

"Why are you fighting me Uglamore?" Kludd yelled at him.

"I know that you're up to this! Your tricks won't fool me, _your pureness_!" He glared dangerously at Kludd. However, he was slightly confused; since when did he address him as just plain "Uglamore"? Why was he fighting weaker than usual? And how come his tone seemed to have changed? Something was up though, he could feel it.

"What are you talking about? I was in command of the Pure Ones, yes, but I feel different somehow, the last thing I remember is that great gray killing me and then-" He blinked in realization, as did Uglamore. "Then does that mean that…?"

"Ahem."

The two barn owls jumped in surprise and looked on a branch above them to see a rather dark snowy owl and a spotted owl. They looked down at them and blinked.

"What are you doing on the ground?" The snowy asked. The former Pure Ones blinked and realized that they must have not heard their conversation. They looked at each other, shrugged, and joined them on the branch.

"Well, we, er, just an accident." Uglamore answered for them. The snowy was indeed had a black shade around her body, making her odd for a snowy owl, but somehow Kludd seemed to recognize her. The spotted owl, looked like he was very young; most likely in his teens. The snowy churred and shook her head.

"Never mind, now who are you?"

"Kludd."

"Uglamore."

"Cl- Claymore." The spotted owl said. "My name's Claymore. Just Clay, for short."

Kludd and Uglamore nodded and turned to the Snowy.

"And you are…?" Kludd said.

"I'm the Rouge Smith of Silverveil. I prefer to keep my name to myself." She answered. She blinked when she turned to Kludd; she seemed to recognize him as well. "Have… Have we met before?"

"You seem, kind of, familiar, but I can't remember." He sighed, wondering where she had seen her before. Somewhere back before Nyra got her scar?

He froze. _Nyra, _he thought. Where was she? What had happened to her? Was she somewhere on the island, too? He shook the thought off and, speaking of "Where", he remembered that he needed to know where they were. Since the rouge smith was the one from Silverveil, did that mean they were in Silverveil?

"Um, so, I'm guessing we're in Silverveil, then? We don't really know where we are, actually." Kludd asked.

"We were going to ask you the same thing." The Rouge Smith of Silverveil answered. "It is strange because I think I died because I remember being pushed into my own forge."

"All I remember is my younger brother and I chasing a friend of ours because of something in a blizzard and I crashed into the snow." Clay stated, noting that it seemed similar.

"What!" Uglamore shouted out. "I remember dying by a sick dire wolf to save the kings life!"

"And I died because a great gray that slashed my backbone and killed by my brother!"

They all blinked. They were all owls who remembered dying, then ending up here. So that could only mean one thing:

"We're… We're dead then?" Kludd asked to no one in particular. But however, he got an answer from a deep, unknown voice.

"No, you're very much alive."

The four owls jumped. They looked around for the owner of the voice until they came upon a branch of a tree higher than them. This owl looked very different than what they had mostly seen. This owl was bigger than any of them, he had a white face, blackish-gray running and white dots running all over his body except for his face, and what really caught their attention were his eyes, they were a deadly looking fiery orange. The owl flew down on a branch in front of them, and spoke on.

"You were all dead once, yes, but I have brought you back to life; you are all owls who died either in an accident, or by the talon of another owl. You have all earned a second chance to live under my protection to help change the future of many owls. Several evils in the owl kingdoms are lurking around that will bring harm to the lives of many owls and more. You have been selected by Glaux himself to help me with this task."

They all were staring at him for a few seconds, until the rouge smith broke the silence.

"And who are you?"

"Oh, forgive me. I am Zarko, Northern Hawk Owl, _Surnia Ululam_. I serve Glaux and fight for all of living kind to keep balance in the world and give everybody they're freedom from the light."

"'The light?'" Kludd blurted out. "You mean… you serve Glaux _himself_? As in, actually talking to him and carrying out his tasks he gives you?"

Zarko nodded.

"So, you have brought us here to help for the same cause?" The rouge smith asked.

Zarko nodded.

"Well," Uglamore said, grabbing their attention. "For a question that is necessary, where are we?"

"You are somewhere far away from the owl kingdoms. Somewhere no one knows about."

"A bit more specific than that, please."

"We are on an island that has not been marked on any maps that have ever existed in the owl kingdoms an island where I live and no one else has, where you will be staying for awhile." He nodded at his answer, and then flew a branch back. "I live this way. Come on now; I got some rat roasting and I can tell that you're all starving."

With that, he flew off. They other owls flew after him. But at the moment, there was just one question running through their heads; what have they gotten into?

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><p><strong>Annnd, done! I posted this a little earlier than I planned so I could get an idea of how many reviews this gets and how often I should update this, how long I should make the chapters, and what people will think of this. So please R&amp;R!<strong>


	2. Chapter 2

**Sorry for the delay! First I had gotten about 4 5ths of this chapter written out, then for some reason it deleted its self completely. After that, my kitten caught the **_**feline parvo**_**! Thank god she lived; the chances were 1 in 12! And then I had to write something for Wolfsalvo. I finished it last night, so I'm gettin' back to this! Oh, and I don't know if I mentioned this last chapter… but I HAVE ASPERGERS! If you don't know what that is, then look it up on Google or something… Also, thank you those who reviewed, or were going to review but never got the chance (Happens to me sometimes). And for people who weren't going to review, but added this for favs or alert and haven't posted a story… I get emails telling me that stuff, **_**soo**_**… It ain't a secret, and it doesn't really support me. Last thing… NOBODY, I repeat, NOBODY, send me reviews saying that you saw a few errors, or give me 'tips' about writing, or say stuff like, "This person's personality is like this! That person is the reason for that!" Please, I get enough of those on my LotD story; it's got 4 chapters and half of the reviews include that, and there are 20 or 30 reviews!**

**Disclaimer: Don't need to do it again; it's on last chapter.**

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><p>The four owls stepped into the Northern Hawk's hollow and were greeted by the sight of him twirling a metal bar with four rats on it supported by two more sticking in the ground over a fire. Zarko looked up at them and tossed them each one of the rats.<p>

"Here; go ahead and eat, then I'll answer your questions." He said, then went to the other side of it and began to write something down in a book.

Clay, Uglamore, and the rouge smith began eating immediately, but Kludd looked around the room curiously. He looked over where Zarko was and saw that there were several other books stacked up around him. Then he saw that there was a _big_ chest on the wall of the hollow, and- that was it; nothing else. He shrugged and began to tear into his rat as well. There was a few minutes of silence, then Zarko came back over to them.

"Okay. Go ahead and ask away."

Kludd and Uglamore both opened their beaks to say something but the Rouge smith beat them to it.

"Who are you, and why are we here?" She asked.

"I have already told you who I am, but you are here because you died before you were meant to, you have been given another chance to live and save the lives of many. When you died, I gathered your… _remains_, brought them to Glaux, he took them and brought them to life, then, he sent you here to help me-help me help others, I mean." He answered.

"So, we died, and then we were brought here."

"Exactly."

"But why us?" Uglamore asked.

"Because if I picked a living owl, they would be considered missing and others would go out and search, leaving a large risk of us being exposed. If I picked an owl that was thought dead, however… they would _not_ search for you."

"Yes, but…" Uglamore said. "But why _us_? I mean; why a rouge smith, a young spotted owl, me, a Pure One-"

"And me- Metal Beak?" Kludd barged in. The rouge smith gasped at this.

"You! The owl that had me make the battle claws before the siege of the Great Tree!"

"Yes, yes. That may be, but…" Zarko stopped her. "I picked you out myself. I picked you because I believe that you have what it takes to be an owl willing to fight and train to keep peace in the world. And not only have that, but you all had a connection between family members and friends."

"And…" Kludd asked slowly. "Why do I not feel the same as before?"

"For that reason, well…" He sighed as he placed a wing on Kludd's shoulder and looked him in the eyes; letting Zarko's fierce orange eyes meet Kludd's completely black. "The reason you were so evil, why you thought so differently, why you kicked Soren out of your nest when you were just a hatchling, is because no one knew it, but before you were even hatched, you were Shattered."

"WHAT!" Everyone exclaimed. Kludd was the first to speak out of the shock. "B-But, who…"

"Can't say." Zarko sighed. "But whoever he was, he certainly used you as a puppet to take control of the owl world without him being blamed and the hate for someone else; you. You felt differently because you shared his emotions. He has _your _memories up until you died."

"Um… not to be rude or change the subject or anything," Clay interrupted. "But who are the Pure Ones? And what is Shattering?"

The two Barns and Snowy looked at him in complete shock. Zarko, though, looked calm, as if knowing about this.

"Ah, yes. I forgot; you grew up in the Northern Kingdoms, didn't you? Well, to put it simply, the Pure Ones are pretty much a group of Tytos who think they are the most pure owls that exist, that they are Glaux's favorite, and that other owls should not exist. They are twisted owls who think too highly of themselves. And as for Shattering… well, it's pretty much just 'mind control'." Clay nodded in semi-understanding. "I'll give you more details later."

"So, did anyone else know about this?" Uglamore asked.

"Only Nyra knew. The only reason she loved Kludd was because she knew who it really was." Zarko answered. "That's enough questions for now. My point for bring you here…"

He walked in front of Kludd.

"You are Kludd, former leader of the Pure Ones, also known as Metal Beak. You were Shattered your whole life and never knew it. You may have done evil things back then, but kicking Soren out of your nest, was in fact, the _greatest _thing you've ever done. If you hadn't kicked him out of the nest, he would have never been through all the things he enjoys. I don't know why he hated you when you had done him a great deed."

He then walked over to Uglamore.

"You are Uglamore, formerly known as Bartholomew. You joined the Tytonic Union after your father died because your mother thought that it would be nice to join other 'like-minded' owls. You had told all your friends back then that your name was Shadow since you had indeed come from the southern of Shadow Forest. You were then named Uglamore after your naming ceremony along with Junior, who then became Stryker and another owl who became Wortmore. After Kludd's death, an owlet named Nyroc had gotten lose and you chased after him into Shadow Forest. You found him sleeping in a hollow and when you saw him, there was a crown of light atop his head, which marked him as the true king of Ga'Hoole. Company had arrived then, it was Stryker and a masked owl, Vaygar. They hadn't seen him yet, luckly. Stryker insulted you thinking that you had come back to see your old childhood. He left but Vaygar had stayed to hunt. He had then seen Nyroc but before he could leave to report, you killed him right then and there. You left him after that, knowing that you would be hunted for your treachery. When Nyroc woke, he stepped outside, but the snow had covered the blood of his attacker, but also covered the tracks of his protector- you. You met up with him Beyond the Beyond, and you gave your life to save him once again."

Next, he approached the Rouge Smith of Silverveil.

"You are the Rouge Smith of Silverveil. You did not give away your name, but you were, in fact, known as Thora." She wifled her feathers at this. Zarko only smirked. "Your sister's name is Brunwella, or Madame Plonk. Back a very long time ago, you both lost your mum in the Battle of the Ice Talons- the final bloody battle of the War of the Ice Claws. You both fled your home after that. A year after that, your Da, and aging Snowy named Berrick, had taken your stepmother, Rodmilla, as a mate. Eventually, Marquis Henryk VI and his parents were scheduled to visit. Rodmilla had planned to have Henryk propose to Brunwella by acting on your best behaviors. After that, he had proposed. You both didn't like it. You both went to Dark Fowl Island after the voice tryouts at the Great Tree to go find your Da. You stopped at the Bay of Fangs first and found a friend of Sigrid's in the resistance, Torsten. He told a tale saying that Sigrid had been wounded after raiding the Ice Talons Headquarters at nightfall but found that it was on lockdown and had doubled the guards. Brunwella then accompanied Torsten north to find Berrick, while you headed on to Dark Fowl to check on Sig. When you found him, you learned from him that Rodmilla was a slipgizzle for the Ice Talons. Brunwella and Torsten, meanwhile, found Berrick and explained the same. They then left for Dark Fowl immediately. Then Rodmilla had come in the area you were. Berrick and Brunwella arrived there just then as well. In the end, you had killed Rodmilla, but Berrick and Sigrid were dead. As you burned their bodies, Brunwella had begun to sing. Then you both flew south. You had gone off to find Sigrid's family in Silverveil, while Brunwella became the singer at the Great Tree."

He sighed deeply and continued towards Clay.

"And you are Claymore, brother of Cleve. You were the prince who was promised, but died in an accident. That's all I'm going to say- nothing more."

"You are four owls who lived lives and died. But your families are in danger. You will have abilities and skills better than any other owl, but not enough to match mine. It is here, where I will train you. It is here, where we will change the tides of the war… discreetly."

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><p><strong>A bit shorter than I had anticipated, but it'll have to do. The backgrounds of the characters are all true, that's <strong>_**really **_**what happened to them. If you want to know what happened to Clay… then read Lost Tales of Ga'Hoole. Oh, and if anyone has a better idea for a title. Please, I don't care what it is, just as long as it's better!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey everybody! Just finished reading **_**War of the Ember **_**a days ago and… holy crap, the way Coryn died, that was quick. I knew he was going to die by getting his wing ripped off, but I didn't expect it like that. **_**But **_**I might give out spoilers to people who give good reviews, like Crazybird101, best review I've ever gotten, honestly. And as a reply to blackbite10, dude, did you not see that I put "****I HAVE APERGERS!****" down? If you looked it up then it would answer all of that. And seriously, when I read stories, I notice TONS of mistakes in them, but do I say anything? No, I put what I liked about the chapter and all of that. I even read yours and noticed that there were in fact, **_**nineteen **_**grammar errors in the first chapter alone, and not including the title. So don't go saying that and I could even tell you all of them I saw, even though it may not be exact. I ain't hatin' or anything, but seriously… if you got a problem then why do you read it? I may have errors in mine, but I don't know! So if you're going to go do that then at least make sure that you don't have many more… And listing events! It was only the 2****nd**** chapter for Christ's sake! So if you ain't gonna review things that I **_**don't **_**find offensive, then don't review at all… I'd rather have no review than one I consider a flame, which others may not. Also note that when it's typing, I can't hear your voice, so I can't tell between sarcasm and stuff like that. Don't let your computer be a shield because would you say it to their face? This is a note to **_**all**_** who want to do that, so now you can see how pissed off I get. Ahem, **_**ANYWAYS**_**…**

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><p>It had been a good two weeks since the four owls had been brought to the island. They had been training hard in the ways Zarko had been teaching them, and they didn't even seem the same in personality, sometimes. Kludd had been proved to be the most skilled warrior of the four, executing combat moves the most perfect. Clay had learned to be the stealthiest; he was swift and quiet, and was also the best at disguising himself, too. Thora was the best blacksmith (obviously), but her skills went beyond twice as much as when she was just a rougesmith. She now had learned to make battle claws out of a gleaming silvery metal Zarko had shown them called ivory. The battle claws were smooth, slick, lighter than others, and were dangerously sharp, making it very deadly. Uglamore surprisingly, seemed to be the one with the most perception, meaning he had a sharp eye, hearing (thanks to him being a barn owl), and tacticsplans.

"Alright, you've all trained up enough. It's time to get into action." Zarko announced. "One of my slipgizzles has informed me that there's a small Pure Ones encampment hidden deep in the Forest Kingdom of Ambala. We need to take it out, there's an estimate of about fifteen to twenty of them."

"Slipgizzles?" Kludd blurted out. "You mean we're not the only ones?"

"Yes, but not on our missions. My four brothers travel throughout the owl kingdoms in search of the Pure Ones or any other threat. Once one is found, he reports back to me, then goes out again."

"Your brothers?" Clay was the one to talk this time.

"Yes, but that's not important right now." He said, and then led them over to a map of the Pure Ones encampment. "They have taken over three hollows in the area. There's three or more of them in each in one. Next, they have about one or two on the same trees. And last, they have four groups of scouts going around the area." He nodded to each of them. "The plan is to take down a group of scouts. After they realize they haven't been back in time, a few more will be sent out. Meanwhile, we'll sneak in the area while they're distracted. I want Kludd and Clay to take out the first one, silently. Uglamore, Thora and I will make some noise while taking down the second, and that should make the scouts and some from the last hollow. Then once they attack us, Kludd and Clay will attack from behind, since they'll know nothing about them. Any questions?"

Silence at first, but then Uglamore raised a talon.

"Uglamore?"

"Well, I was wondering exactly _how _we're supposed to get off this island."

Everyone blinked.

"Good question. This island isn't really _in _the owl kingdoms. You see, no one else besides us and my slipgizzles of course, have ever set foot, talon, paw, whatever, on this island. No other eyes have even been laid on it. This island lies in a kingdom not too far from the east. And the east is the where you all came from- the Northern, Southern, and Middle kingdoms.

"Middle Kingdom?" Everyone asked in confusion. Zarko sighed.

"Look, my point is that we need to fly east. Anymore questions?"

Everyone raised a talon.

"That _doesn't _involve the 'Middle Kingdoms.'"

Everyone lowered a talon.

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><p><em>Oh, Great Glaux! <em>Both Kludd and Clay thought as one of the stopped scouts began flying in their direction at the tree they were hiding near.

The scout got even closer. Kludd felt like he was about to lunge out towards him, but was stopped by Clay. A few seconds later, a familiar Northern Hawk fell down on top of him with his sword going through the Pure One's neck. He tried to utter a word to warn the others, but was swallowed up by the gurgling of his blood. Zarko turned around towards the two after he died. They saw behind his greatly detailed engraved ivory mask his fierce orange eyes flash, saying,_ Move up and take out the rest._

They both nodded and flew towards a closer tree. Kludd looked back at Zarko and thought it was odd that he would use a sword over a pair of battle claws. But who was he to judge?

They landed on a tree right next to the one the Pure Ones were perched on.

"Wonder if he's doing alright back there." One said.

"Well whatever he heard, it was probably just a vole or something." Another said.

"Yeah, the Barn Owl trusts his sensitive hearing too much." The last voice agreed.

Clay and Kludd nodded towards each other and flew in behind them. They hit their backs and the 2 fell down to the ground silently. The remaining owl gasped and was about to strike but was put down by Uglamore and Thora, who each grabbed a wing and together tore his the back of his neck open, then was let go to fall to the ground. Zarko flew down to them.

"Good work. We'll have a few minutes before they realize something's wrong. You know the drill; Kludd and Clay, go left. Thora, Uglamore, with me." And with that the three flew off.

"You heard him. Let's go." Kludd said as he took off.

"Right, let's try not to get spotted." Clay muttered. Kludd felt strange about doing this. He used to be the _leader _of these owls, but now he was killing them like a chore. _No, _he thought. _I'm not they're leader; I was never with them in the first place. I was used like owlpoppin to do someone's dirty work and for _me _to take the blame for doing nothing._

They were flying for about three minutes when Clay spotted something coming they're way.

"There's one of the groups. They must have figured it out then." Clay told him. "Let's hide in the trees to avoid them."

Kludd nodded and he flew towards a tree to his left and pressed himself against it. Clay had done the same on the other side. The owls passed by about five seconds later.

"We're almost on the team's path. Keep an eye out for them." The one who was the obviously the leader ordered. The duo waited a few more seconds before taking off again.

_I wonder who exactly Clay was though… _he continued to think. _Zarko said that he'd say nothing more than his name was Claymore, he has a brother named… Cleve, was it? And was the 'prince who was promised…' What does that mean? And why does Zarko seem more… different, than other owls? His attacks are brutal, he kills them emotionless. _He then remembered something Zarko had told him.

"_My life is focused on redemption and retribution. I may seem like I'd be a natural born killer, but I only kill because it is done righteously. I've stared down death itself, I looked into the fire burning in his eyes, has never gotten the chance to take me because of the flame inside of me which burns brighter than the fire of my enemies , yet the burn on and on… even today. The flame is like power, but those who gain power become corrupt, and then the corrupt kill for the fun of it and take what they want from others. The flame inside of them starts off small enough to merely light a candle, but like any other fire, it spreads, and then grows, like a forest fire would. The more it grows, the harder it is to put it out, and the easier it will be noticed. It may be big, but it is dim, unlike mine which is a light shinning in the darkness, for that is what I am- the only thing visible… yet in reality, it is the exact opposite."_

Zarko's words had made clear sense to him. Corrupting power grows, and then it is noticed easier. It is dim, yet it is noticed easier than the brighter ones, even when they're bigger.

"Up ahead."

Clay's words snapped Kludd out of his thoughts and there was a hollow not too far away. On two branches there were more Pure Ones.

"Definitely the one we're looking for." Kludd nodded.

"Let's take them down at the same time, and then enter the hollow to take them down at once. If we're lucky, they might think we're the guards until they see us." Clay suggested. Kludd nodded once again and they split up.

They perched themselves on different trees that were higher than the braches they were on. Clay looked up at Kludd and signaled to strike. Kludd dived down and tore into the guard's flesh. Kludd looked up and saw that Clay had finished his off, too. They perched by the entrance and Clay got an idea.

"Shhh…" Clay shushed Kludd, and then cleared his throat. "Sir?"

"Something to report?" Came a reply.

"Yes, urgent message from…" Clay stopped for a second to think about what to say. "From Commander Stryker."

Clay remembered Stryker from Uglamore's past. He hoped at the moment he was still alive, but dead later.

"Commander Stryker? This must be urgent, enter." Clay sighed in relief, as did Kludd. Even though he was a high-ranking Pure One, they needed some excuse to come in and get a small advantage.

They entered and saw that the backs of four Pure Ones were facing them. They appeared to be just finishing up something they were discussing.

"Now… what does Commander Stryker-" The owl was stopped short at the sight of Kludd. They were all staring at him in complete and utter of both silence and shock. "Y-Y-Y- Your- your Pureness?"

He was dead before he hit the ground, for Kludd had slashed his chest open. One of Clay's battle clawed talons went deep into the stomach of another one. The next two looked in even more shock but was added with horror. Kludd lashed through a leg of the third, causing him to fall to the ground. Before he could make another sound, Kludd sliced his neck open. Clay had begun to attack the last one who had gotten over the shock and defended himself. Kludd flew up behind him and hooked his talons into the Pure One's back, then threw him across the hollow. Kludd jumped towards him to finish it, but stopped when his talons were dangerously close to cutting his head off, he was crying silently from the pain.

"What… what did I do, your Pureness? What did I do make you come and haunt me?" He pleaded weakly. Kludd store into his eyes for a few seconds before speaking.

"It's what you _haven't _done." He said. "Burned in Hagsmire."

And with that, the owls head was cut off. Clay looked at the scene before nodding at Kludd. Just then, they heard a loud and frightening battle cry.

They began to hear the sound of yelling and screaming coming from further out, and they both knew what it was.

"Looks like their doing their part…" Clay stated the obvious. Kludd nodded in agreement.

"Let's go out and help like they said, otherwise it may not go so well." Kludd replied. They flew straight out of the hollow and went towards the yells and screams.

They had been flying for about two minutes when they saw one of the scouting groups of five going in the same direction.

"Kludd, down there." Clay told him. Kludd looked down and knew what he was suggesting. They flew behind their and above their trail and watched them carefully.

"How did those guardians manage this?"

"I don't know, but they sure are making a lot of noise."

"The other scouts should have heard this so it should be no problem with the whole area."

"They took down those scouts down by surprise, but we know."

The two had been listening to their conversation for awhile until a Northern Hawk, Snowy, and Barn Owl amazingly fighting a group of about five Tytos, while there were three corpses.

Zarko blocked a swing from a Masked Owl by letting his talons collide against his. The Pure One slung his other leg but screamed in pain as Zarko had cut it with his sword. He took this chance and plunged it deep into his stomach; the sword came out through the other side but was then pulled out. He then engaged another. Uglamore was fighting a large Barn Owl who had several cuts on his torso and one on his face. Uglamore dodged a swipe from him by flying over, and then lunged down into his head. Thora was fighting a Lesser Sooty Owl, he reached his talons out towards her but she had no problem evading damage.

After seeing this, Clay dived towards the owl the furthest back of the group they were just following. He grabbed him by the neck and dug his battle claws into the flesh. They didn't notice due to the battle going on up ahead, so this was perfect! Kludd cut the back of another behind them. The one up front noticed this, however.

"Behind us!" He warned. The other two turned around but did not have a chance to do anything else, for they were killed immediately by the duo. The last one who had warned them of their appearance flew in towards Clay with extended talons. Clay had no time to react. He got mere inches away from his face but was stopped when his wing had been torn off by Kludd. He screamed in pain as he fell to the ground and was silenced from it due to his already weakened body. Clay breathed heavily as he looked at the corpse, and then looked up at Kludd.

"Thank… you…" He breathed out. Kludd laughed, Clay chuckled a little, too, but not much. "Okay… let's go take down the rest then, yeah?"

"Not like we have a choice." Kludd finished laughing up then flew towards Zarko, Uglamore and Thora who were finishing off the last two. Clay followed suit.

"Perfect job!" Zarko yelled as they got to him. "There are still two more scouting parties, and then we'll go for the last hollow! Clay, Uglamore, and Thora, hid out in this area, Kludd, we're gonna draw them in!"

Kludd nodded and flew off with him elsewhere. It only took a few minutes until they saw that they were going in the opposite direction of the last two. They had seemed to have found each other and now there was about nine of them total.

"Over here ya cowards!" Zarko taunted and began to go in the direction they had just come, as did Kludd.

"After them!" They heard a yell. "Don't let them escape!"

"Just keep going, Kludd…" Zarko whispered silently as possible, knowing that Kludd could hear it well. "You _Pure Ones _are nothing but a pile of frinkin' racdrops! Ya spinking Tytos! Puffins are smarter than you!"

Kludd was greatly surprised by Zarko's outburst of cursing. He even used the word nobody ever used, "sprink." He looked back and saw that the Pure Ones had looks of all annoyance, anger, and shock.

* * *

><p>"King Coryn!" A messenger busted into the parliament without a warning. Coryn, Soren, the rest of the band, and Otulissa looked at him in surprise. He was out of breath like he had just flown through a hurricane but dry.<p>

"What is wrong?" Coryn asked, sensing that whatever had happened had to be urgent. He took in a few breaths before speaking.

"It was just learned at First Black, that a Pure One encampment was found in the Forest Kingdom of Ambala."

"The Pure Ones?" Twilight interrupted. "In Ambala?"

"Shh, let him finish!" Gylfie silenced him.

"What it so urgent about this, other than that it is the Pure Ones?" Coryn asked again.

"They were all dead. We found about thirty dead bodies of Tytos all around the place. They were found with fatal wounds, wings nearly ripped off, heads, missing legs, everything! We found three hollows with a few more in them. They had information there, but the majority of it was taken. And we have no records of who could've done it."

They were all there in silence.

"They were killed by someone else?" Soren blinked.

"Yes, and we found a message in one of the hollows. It was left by whoever did it." He opened a bag from his leg and pulled out a piece of paper.

"Let me read it." Coryn ordered. The messenger gave it to him and bowed. The band and Otulissa got by his side and read it as well

"_To Coryn, embered monarch of the Great Tree, Soren, Gylfie, Twilight, and Digger, the band, and Otulissa…_

_ "Our work is just beginning; this was merely a small thing that will compare to the rest in the future. The Pure Ones will not care about what has happened here, they will only focus on destroying the Great Tree. But right now the real question is; what of us? We know how you feel towards the _Pure Ones_, but what will you think of us? Will you seek us out to make allies of us in hope to destroy the Pure Ones? Will we be considered an enemy in fear that you will share the same fate as the Pure Ones? Or will we merely be noticed and only take advantage of us by using our, 'work,' to take down the Pure Ones? No matter the choice, it will not make a difference; the five of us will continue to strike the eyes of the Pure Ones, and leave no survivors, no evidence, and no plans of theirs that will majorly effect the war._

_ "A few of us you may know; think back to the investigation of Ezylryb's disappearance, the siege of the Great Tree, when Strix Struma died, Nyra's assault on Coryn in the Beyond, after retrieving the ember, and the Northern Kingdoms before the Great Burning, we were involved in all of those, and as for me… I was there- St. Aggies, the 'you only wish,' the Great Downing, the Siege, Gylfie's capture from the Kraals, the War of Fire and Ice, Coryn's hatching, Kludd's Marking ceremony, the Beyond- _ev-ery-where_. I've seen it all, even Hoole, Grank and Theo themselves! But that won't help. Now go- go to Ambala, see the aftermath, see it through the fire, see it in your dreams through the stars. You know what will happen. But know this; this is not the last you will hear from me._

_Yours truly and honestly to heart,_

_ The Crusader, and messenger, of Glaux… Our prayers are with you..."_

They fell silent for minutes, in complete shock. Soren broke the silence.

"He wants us to go and…" Coryn nodded.

"He wants me to use my firesight and you to use your starsight in Ambala."

* * *

><p><strong>WOOOHOOO! Longest chapter I've EVER done (Not counting One-shots)! I meant to get this out on Friday the 13<strong>**th****, but I went to the Great Wolf Lodge this weekend and had the time of my life! I was going to add them going to Ambala but decided that it was a better cliffhanger and it was already long enough. But whatever! Also, I got a few lines from Fallout: New Vegas.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Back to work already! I used to rarely update on other stories but now I'm back into it! Anyways, to explain a few things about last chapter… I decided to use lines from Fallout: New Vegas because I had my OC's (Zarko) personality and all that for about a year, I just never used it. Then about a month or two ago I played the Honest Hearts DLC on FO: NV and then I find a guy named "Joshua Grahm," with the voice actor of Keith Szarabajka, go and have the same, well, everything! So I figured that since he shares almost the exact same personality as Zarko I should use some of his quotes. If you got a problem with that, then you should not like GoG'H then; in **_**War of the Ember**_**, Nyra had said something about dying in the sun and Coryn replied, "Then we will fight in the shade!" Exact words in 300, Kathryn even admitted that. So you can't not like this story because of that and like GoG'H itself. Also, the time period this is on is right before **_**The Golden Tree**_**. Enough rambling, on with the story!**

* * *

><p>"Great Glaux…" Coryn whispered as they looked at all looked at the blood and bodies in the hollow. "They really showed them no mercy."<p>

"They certainly didn't." Gylfie nodded slowly, agreeing.

They looked around the hollow at where there was a body with the head missing. Coryn felt like he was about to yarp at the sight. He looked over and saw the other three bodies decaying. He was very sickened at all of it.

"How many owls were there, I wonder…?" Soren muttered as he examined the area.

"The note said five. But was that _all _of them, or just the leaders?" Digger pondered the question.

"It would have to be more than five. I don't think five of me could do… _this_." Twilight stated as he looked down at the bodies with an unreadable expression. Twilight was an experienced fighter, but for him to admit this? It was unbelievable!

Coryn blinked after looking down at the headless owl and flew out.

"I want to see the rest of the hollows, let's go." Was all he said before leaving. The band looked at each other and blinked in confusion but flew after him.

They were just arriving outside of the hollow when they noticed about nine to twelve more corpses. The band stayed outside of the hollow to look around, but Coryn and his uncle went inside to look some more. There was no blood or bodies at all in the hollow, only traces of Pure Ones. Coryn saw that there was a lit grate in the hollow, still burning after what had happened. He blinked as he looked at it. Before he could look further into it, he felt a thud behind him. He jumped and turned around to see that Soren was out cold, just lying on the floor.

"UNCLE!" Coryn yelled as he ran to him. The band flew in immediately and saw the state Soren was in.

"Soren!" They yelled as well and ran up to him.

_**[LINE HERE]**_

Coryn sat in the hollow alone with Soren lying unconscious in a nest. It had been about an hour sense he had blacked out. The matron said that he was going to be okay, but had no idea of the cause. It was decided to wait and see, so they left him in there because there was no point in moving him somewhere else.

He looked over at his uncle in depression, wondering what had happened. He sighed and looked into the grate which he realized was still burning. He store at it for minutes until he began to see something. He peered into it and eventually saw something.

He saw the other hollow they were in before. A Barn Owl was above a Pure One with his battle claws raised to his neck and a Spotted Owl was to the side. They both wore masked, he noticed.

"_It's what you _haven't_ done." _The Barn Owl said. _"Burned in Hagsmire." _And then cut his head off.

His vision then changed to another Barn Owl, a strangely blackish Snowy, and a… Northern Hawk from the looks of it, all with masks as well. The Northern Hawk had cut off one of their legs, and then plunged through his gizzard. The Barn Owl he saw had just seen evaded a hit from a bigger Barn Owl and brought his talons out into his face. After that, it became black.

"_Perfect Job!"_

"_After them! Don't let them escape!"_

"_You _Pure Ones _ain't nothing but a pile of frinkin' racdrops! Ya spinking Tytos! Puffins are smarter than you!"_

_He then heard a series of painful screams, and then he found that he was no longer looking into a fire. He wasn't even in the hollow! He realized that he was in the middle of nowhere, literally. He was standing on nothing, and all around him was red and black hues fading into each other. He looked over to his right and saw Soren standing there._

"_Soren!" He yelled. His voice echoed hollowly. Soren looked over at him and looked just as surprised._

"_Coryn!" He yelled back._

"_Where… Where are we?" He asked, shaking. Soren shook his head in confusion._

"_I-I don't know…" He replied and looked around slowly. "But I've never seen anything like it…."_

"_**You are safe." **__A deep, dark, voice echoed around them. They spun their heads to the side and saw the shadowy figure of an owl. __**"… For now."**_

"_For now?" The both boomed. He remained quiet and looked at them._

"_**I cannot explain it to you, but am here to tell you something."**_

"_But who are you?" Coryn asked. The dark figure chuckled._

"'_**Go to Ambala, see the aftermath, see it through the fire, see it in your dreams through the stars…'" **__He quoted. __**"You know who I am, I requested you to come here so you may see what happened. Now you know, but my work with you is not done. You must not pay heed to this, do not let it change your course, and do not seek us out. The choice is still yours, but I'd advise otherwise. The five of us did what was necessary. But don't worry; all is not lost… not yet."**_

"_I don't understand." Coryn said._

"_**There is no need to understand, just, **_**know**_**. The Pure Ones still exist; they still threaten the owl world, and so much more." **__He said once again. __**"You must focus on other matters at hand, unless the Pure Ones affect you. But as long these ones stay the same, don't worry about them; they'll be dealt with all in the matter of time."**_

"_Why do you deal with them and not us?"_

"_**Because it will leave you defenseless, unguarded, exposed. For now we are to let history take its path, but when the time comes, the course **_**will **_**change, forever. You have been through a lot in your lives, don't ruin it, or you may die realizing you still had so much to do on Earth, and your loved ones will be back home all crying 'cause they'll already be missing you."**_

"_So we're going to die?" Soren said, trying to find the point of his statements._

"_**Well, everybody's gotta die sometime, if it is soon your referring to, no. Glaux doesn't make the decisions, when a live is taken by another, it can be changed. But when it is by a cause of nature, it will happen until they die. Go and remember this, but do not let it change your decisions."**_

"_What are you talking about?" Coryn questioned him._

"_**You know what I am talking about, but anything you don't will all be answered soon… all very, very soon."**_

Coryn jumped up as he awoke from what almost seemed like a daymare. He breathed in and out heavily but closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths. After a few seconds, he opened his eyes slowly and looked over at Soren to see that he was also up, breathing heavily, too.

"Soren!" He called over. Soren looked at him and blinked.

"Did… did we just see the same thing?" He asked.

"I think we did…" He muttered an answer.

* * *

><p>"What are we doing here, anyways?" Uglamore asked as they flew through Silverveil. It had been about a week since they're, <em>encounter<em>, with the Pure Ones.

"There's a book we need to recover from Trader Mags. It should be here that it is. We need to take the book without anyone noticing, though. Clay is going to do this."

"Why me?" Clay asked.

"Clay, you're the stealthiest one of us all, you know how to put things back in the exact position they were in, you can move without a snake noticing you, and plus, if you were to be spotted, it would not be anyone to be recognized." Zarko answered simply.

"So why are we all going then?" Uglamore asked again.

"Because, if we run into trouble, Clay can't do it alone, just trust me on this." He looked at Uglamore as he said this, and then turned his head in front. "And that looks like Mags over there."

They stopped on a tree and saw Trader Mags and Bubbles sorting out things.

"Alright then, Clay, go in and do your thing, I'll make a distraction." He said, handed a book to him. "Look for a book looking just like this one, and replace it." He instructed and flew down. "Ah! Hello Mags!"

Trader Mags looked over at him and smiled. (If an owl can even smile, that is…)

"Been a long time, L… Lynix, right?"

"Yes, that's me." He said as he landed. Meanwhile, Clay was sneaking up from behind them, looking around carefully for the book.

"Yes, I don't think I've seen you since, what? Before the War of Fire and Ice?" She asked, trying to remember correctly.

"I think so; I was on my way to the Barrens when I heard that you were here so I thought I might stop by." He said. "And I was also here to drop off a few things…"

"Wonderful! What is it you had?" She asked. Clay was searching through a bag and still had no luck finding it.

"Thought that I might give you some of those rubies I found." He pulled out a small sack in his talon and tossed it to Bubbles.

"You always have been helpful for business, thank you." She said and was about to turn around. Clay stopped dead as he saw this.

"Hey, did you hear that?" Zarko said as he looked behind him.

"Hear what? I don't hear anything."

Clay immediately looked down and saw the book. He picked it up and put the replacement in its place. Then he slowly walked away.

"I thought I just head a few voices, it must be nothing. Anyways, I'll be going now." Zarko said as he began to hover.

"Ah, well, until next time!" She said and turned around. "Don't just stand there! Put the rubies somewhere!"

Zarko couldn't help but chuckle as he flew away, knowing she was talking to Bubbles. He flew up in the tree they had arrived on and saw them there with the book.

"Give it to me." He told Clay. He nodded and handed it over. Zarko opened it and flipped through the pages.

"What is that book anyways?" Thora asked as she watched the pages flip. Zarko stopped on a page and skimmed it for a moment before flipping again.

"_The Book of Kreeth_, Nyra was supposed to get it soon, so I replaced it with another. And if she does do a ritual, I've replaced a few things with something else, so it won't work."

"And what was all that about?" Kludd asked him. "About you and Mags?"

"Well, it's a long story, but I told her my name was 'Lynix' just in case." He answered. "Now then, let's get back to base now, shall we?"


	5. Chapter 5

**4-21-12 UPDATE: ****I need to inform all readers that I may not be updating for awhile, and if I do then you might find errors often. Reason is, my kitten got **_**feline parvo**_** about a month ago and… well, yesterday her leg was ran over by a car, we took her to an animal hospital and this morning, about 5:00 A.M… we got a call. After living through the parvo, and having a 7 month life… she's gone… just gone… you must understand that this is the most excruciating mental pain I have ever been in. And all I have to comfort me is my family and the song "Fiction" by Avenged Sevenfold… until I feel better… I'll be having either long periods of updates, or not so great grammar…**

* * *

><p>"What's so important about this book anyways?" Kludd asked as Zarko opened the book.<p>

"It contains many things haggish. Nyra was planning to use it to summon her _true _husband here with an army of damned souls, and for a cover up, she claimed she was going to summon you back from the grave instead." He answered, and then flipped a page.

"So why do we need it?" Clay asked now.

"One; even though the guardians will claim it anyways, others might try to take it from them in the future. Two; it contains the strongest healing beverages in the owl world, as well as the recipe. The ingredients are hidden somewhere in this book, but they cannot be found anywhere in the owl world. It doesn't have all of the items we need though, but they are much easier to find. We need it just as much as the Pure Ones do." He answered again as he flipped yet another page. "Glaux, very haggish indeed…"

"What are you planning to do with the healing?" Clay asked.

"Save it; one of us may be on the brink of death someday."

This sent chills through their hollow bones.

"Anyways… the band along with Coryn should be departing from the tree in a few days, this gives us the perfect chance to enter and see if we can find anything."

"What do you expect to _find_?" Kludd asked once more.

"Slipgizzles, unusual activity, same old same old." He answered as he closed the book. "We must enter in groups though; there will be eight of us, so two pairs of two, one pair of three, and I will be alone. We must enter at separately as well. Every once in a while we will meet up and share any suspicious activity with owls. _Anything_ and _everything _is to be reported. Any questions?"

Silence.

"Good, I of course, will enter first alone; first to step through the danger line, last to step out. Next, Kludd with one of my brothers will enter. Then, another one of my brothers with Uglamore and Thora will head in. Last, Clay and my last brother. Kludd, Thora, and Uglamore will need to refrain from interacting with any other owls as much as possible, if you're recognized, the whole point of us being here will collapse. This will be a time known as the 'Golden Tree' as the owls left in charge will call it, they will be making the tree… _different_, so don't mind them. We will stay in the tree for about a week, so be prepared. And if you ever need anything, don't hesitate to come find me; I can be trusted with anything you need to talk about, and I will help you." He explained, and then shifted positions. "Once again, any questions?"

"No, sir!" They all said. He nodded in approval.

"Good, I have a map for each of you showing where you will meet up, and the hollow you will be in. My brothers will fill you in on anything else." Zarko handed them each a rolled up scroll, nodding to each of them as he handed it to them. He walked up to the end of the hollow, a large bag on his back, and then looked at them.

"Good luck… and Glaux speed."

* * *

><p>Thora and Uglamore landed on a branch in Cape Glaux, exhausted from the long flight.<p>

"This is the place, right?" Thora asked, looking over at Uglamore. He hummed.

"I think so…"

"'_Think _so?'"

"Well…" Uglamore scratched the back of his head nervously. "I never have been any good with maps, so I don't really know. This does look like it."

Thora sighed. A few seconds later, they heard leaves rustling behind them. They whipped around to see a Southern White-faced Scoops Owl perched on a branch.

"What are your names?" He asked quickly. The duo blinked at each other and looked back at him.

"Um… I'm Thora, and this is Uglamore. Who are you?" She asked in confusion. The White-faced flew up on their branch and stared at them.

"Ah, so you made it after all… My name is Alcrus. I that assume my brother sent you to infiltrate the Great Tree?"

They store at him in shock.

"_You're _Zarko's brother?" Uglamore asked in shock. Alterran churred.

"Well of course I am. I know; I am no Northern Hawk like him, but I am truly his brother. We took on different forms for safety reasons." He explained.

"That makes sense…" Thora muttered.

"It does. Now, we are not to leave until it is almost first black. So if you will, follow me."

* * *

><p>Kludd groaned in irritation as he look at the map, stopping from every once in a while to check it. He looked around but still saw nothing but the few trees of the beaks. He growled as he shook the map violently.<p>

"Where in Glaux's name am I supposed to go!" He shouted. He flew to the top of one of the beak-like stones and looked around. "This place is too hard to find him!"

He sighed and flew back down to the trees. He landed on a branch and turned his head side to side before flying off again.

_If I don't find him soon I swear to Glaux-_

A screech filled his ear sensitive ear slits and he looked up to see an owl fly over him. He tried to identify what type of owl it was, but it was certainly not a Northern Hawk. The owl flew down to his side and said to asked,

"You looking for something?" He looked like he was a Crested Owl, but a bit larger for his species. Kludd simply nodded. "Ah, well follow me; I got a place not too far from here!"

Kludd followed him through a forest until they came across a rather large beak. He noted that there was a hole in it and watched as the Crested Owl flew in. Kludd blink before flying in as well. When he got inside, the place was very nice; the walls were that redish brown color, there was a fire going on in the middle, and there was a variety of items along the area. The Crested Owl turned to face him.

"So… My name is Alcrus, and I live here in the beaks. What brings you here?"

"I was looking for an owl. I think he's a Northern Hawk, have you seen him?" He asked.

"A Northern Hawk? No, I haven't seen a Northern Hawk in a while. Plus, you won't find them down here. Are you sure he's a Northern Hawk, Kludd?"

"Well, I think s-… wait, what?" He looked at him in surprise; he knew his name! "H-How did you know my name?"

"Well, I think who you're looking for is a Crested Owl named Alcrus who is the brother of a Northern Hawk named Zarko…" He churred. "Yep; you found him. So we should be leaving in about an hour or two, so get rested up."

"Hold on, but you're not a Northern Hawk?" Kludd asked again. Alcrus turned around to look at him again.

"I'm his brother, but we aren't all the samE. So for now, just get some rest."

* * *

><p>Clay looked on the branches and ground cautiously as he silently flew through the ghostly Spirit Woods. If he had read the map correctly, he was supposed to meet Zarko's brother here. He had a hard time finding his way due to living in the Northern Kingdoms his whole former life, but he did know that the Spirit Woods was where scrooms lived; spirits of owls who not made it to Glamoura and had unfinished business left on Earth. He would pay his respects and avoid landing on trees very often.<p>

He landed on a lightly on a branch, careful not to be disrespectful, and took out his map.

_I'm in the area now; he should be within a mile or two from here. Once I find him, we are to leave three hours after first black. From the looks of it, we will either fly in a straight path east until we're directly north of the Tree, then take a turn south. Or we could do it the other way around; fly a not far down south, then go east. Either one of those or we will just fly in a straight path for the tree…_

After thinking this through, he rolled up the map and put in the pack strapped to his talon. He stood still for a few seconds before he turned around.

"And who might you be?" He asked out loud. There was nothing but silence for a few seconds, until an owl came in view, perched on a branch. He flew into the light and landed a branch away from Clay. He immediately noticed that he was a Sri Bay Owl.

"My name is Reiden (**AN: **It is pronounced RAI-Den)." He answered as he then focused his strangely shaped face on him. "And you are…?"

"I am Clay of Firthmore, I seek an owl that is camped out in this area of the Spirit Woods."

"Oh? And who might this owl be?" He asked in his deep, dark voice.

"I do not know; I have never met him. I was sent by his brother to find him, and he is a Northern Hawk." Clay answered. There was a pause of silence until the Bay Owl replied.

"Then you have found him. Zarko told me he'd send somebody, but I did not know for certain whom it was." Reiden landed on his branch and looked down at him.

"Zarko's brother is not a Northern Hawk?" Clay said, surprised. "Safety reasons?"

"Precisely." Reiden confirmed. "Follow me to my hollow; we can at least talk there."

"A hollow? Here? In the Spirit Woods?" Clay asked skeptically.

"No need to fear scrooms; the dead know who we are, so they welcome us here. They will allow us to stay here since we are fighting for the safety of their descendants and elders." Reiden flew off to the south. "It is at the peninsula of the woods, so we will be able to leave at a decent time, so rest up all you want."

* * *

><p><strong>And there's chapter 5. I got it out thankfully. I am still not done grieving over the death of my young kitten. But now… she's home; she rests in an urn behind me right now, resting as white ashes. Soon another urn will get here that will have a hand-painted model of her sleeping on top of it, along with angle wings on her back. My dad even got a picture for me, in a frame above my bed it is, with a poem saying…<strong>

_**My Forever Friend…**_

_**I know that it must be different,**_

_**now that I am no longer here.**_

_**I realized how much I was loved**_

_**and how you all did care.**_

_**I know it will be hard at first,**_

_**when you look around for me**_

_**Expecting to find me in my bed**_

_**or beside my favorite tree.**_

_**Someday you will begin to see,**_

_**although it will take some time,**_

_**the happy times you shared with me,**_

_**the memories are yours and mine.**_

_**I'll remember you, my family,**_

_**and how much you meant to me.**_

_**So please don't grieve and be sad,**_

_**It was just my time to leave.**_

**I cry every time I read it, knowing that she died so early...**


	6. Chapter 6

**Just a heads up, I added 5 where the AN was but it didn't say it was updated for some reason, so before you read on, make sure you read the previous one first. Anyways… I have something to say… without speaking… remember what I put in chapter 3? How I said not to send me reviews saying about errors and stuff? I feel that I was being a little too harsh on that, so here's a deal; you can send me that kind of stuff, but ONLY if it is hardly ignorable. If it is something you notice commonly, then please tell me. Reason for me putting that back then was due to me having a bad day I guess… and for those who haven't checked up Aspergers, it basically means that I think things through differently. The syndrome is a major effect to my story, so that things may seem different to you, but not to me.**

_**Asperger syndrome**__** (AS), also known as **__**Asperger's syndrome**__** or **__**Asperger disorder**__**, is an **__**autism spectrum**__** disorder (ASD) that is characterized by significant difficulties in social interaction, alongside restricted and repetitive patterns of behavior and interests. It differs from other autism spectrum disorders by its relative preservation of **__**linguistic**__** and **__**cognitive development**__**. Although not required for diagnosis, physical clumsiness and atypical use of language are frequently reported.**__**[1][2]**_

_**The syndrome is named after the Austrian pediatrician **__**Hans Asperger**__** who, in 1944, studied and described children in his practice who lacked **__**nonverbal communication**__** skills, demonstrated limited **__**empathy**__** with their **__**peers**__**, and were physically clumsy.**__**[3]**__** The modern conception of Asperger syndrome came into existence in 1981**__**[4]**__** and went through a period of popularization,**__**[5][6]**__** becoming standardized as a **__**diagnosis**__** in the early 1990s. Many questions remain about aspects of the disorder.**__**[7]**__** For example, there is doubt about whether it is distinct from **__**high-functioning autism**__** (HFA);**__**[8]**__** partly because of this, its **__**prevalence**__** is not firmly established.**__**[1]**__** It has been proposed that the diagnosis of Asperger's be eliminated, to be replaced by a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder on a severity scale.**__**[9]**_

_**The exact **__**cause**__** is unknown. Although research suggests the likelihood of a **__**genetic**__** basis,**__**[1]**__** there is no known genetic etiology**__**[10][11]**__** and **__**brain imaging**__** techniques have not identified a clear common pathology.**__**[1]**__** There is no single treatment, and the effectiveness of particular interventions is supported by only limited data.**__**[1]**__** Intervention is aimed at improving symptoms and function. The mainstay of management is **__**behavioral therapy**__**, focusing on specific deficits to address poor communication skills, obsessive or repetitive routines, and physical clumsiness.**__**[12]**__** Most children improve as they mature to adulthood, but social and communication difficulties may persist.**__**H**__** Some researchers and people with Asperger's have advocated a shift in attitudes toward the view that it is a difference, rather than a disability that must be treated or cured.**__**[13][14]**_

_**Copied and pasted from Wikipedia**_**… please confirm in a review that you understand. If you don't understand completely, look it up on the internet and please read the Social Skills section.**

**Now that that's covered...**

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><p>"So this is the Great Tree?" Clay looked around at all of the owls inhabiting the oversized tree. He had heard that it was big, but it was <em>way <em>bigger than he had expected.

"Yep, this is the Great Tree of Ga'Hoole, home of the guardians. Place is filled with an estimate of about five hundred to one thousand five hundred. Place is legendary." Reiden explained. They stopped on a branch a few seconds later so Reiden could check the map.

"So what happened to Zarko? Why is it that he prefers to work without you?" Clay asked, curious. Reiden sighed as he looked at the map.

"I think we should explain this as a group. As in, Alterran, Alcrus- the other two brothers, Kludd, Thora and Uglamore, Zarko doesn't really enjoy telling about his past life sometimes, nor does he like hearing it explained to others." Reiden rolled up the map in put it in his bag. "Hollow's not too far from here; only a few more down."

"Okay." They flew off in the direction they had already been going. Clay was having thoughts about his past, though.

_How did I die? I remember landing on Jak after he hit a rock, so shouldn't that have softened my fall? And what about Cleve? I… I shouldn't have been harsh on him I guess. _He paused, realizing something dire. _Glaux, back then I was a horrible flyer, and I could barely even fight, but now look at me! I've been able to fly quieter than any other owl! Kill so many with only four others at my side! I just can't believe how much I've changed!_

They flew inside a hollow to see Zarko, Kludd, Thora, Uglamore, a Crested Owl and a White-faced Scops Owl, who he guessed was Alterran and Alcrus.

"Good, you made it." Zarko said, nodding. Reiden and Clay approached them and the gathered around a stump large enough for them to circle.

"So what do we do now?" Thora asked. Zarko sighed as he began to explain.

"What we do for now is simple; look for anything unusual; owls disappearing or running off from time to time, nervousness, staying out of sight and not really communicating, or not seeming like your everyday 'friendly type'. If you see multiple owls acting these ways, and one of them is a Tyto, keep an eye on them mainly. Every day or two we will have, _meetings_, discussing any suspicious activity. At some point here Otulissa, the Great Tree's writer and Ga'Hoology ryb, will be put in 'jail', due to the owls left in charge being obsessed with the Ember or Hoole, so be careful. Lastly, try to avoid direct contact to each other in public, otherwise some ear slits that are not meant to hear it will, try to use gestures, no direct confrontations on the target. That's all I need to say for now, Coryn and the band shouldn't be back for awhile so we will be here for about a week. Coryn is a good owl; I would hate to oppose him."

"Ah! That reminds me! Kludd, Coryn is actually-" Uglamore clamped his beak shut tightly in pain as Zarko had stomped on his foot very hard out of view.

"Oh yeah! I remember a Rouge Smith telling me that he-" Thora stopped short upon getting a sharp glare from Zarko. Zarko cleared his throat and turned back towards the rest.

"_Anyways_, you are free to go now. My brothers will show you to the hollows you will be staying in for the time being." He nodded, but then turned to Uglamore, Thora, and Clay. "Not you three though; I need to talk to you."

They looked at each other and shrugged. Alterran, Alcrus and Reiden flew out of the hollow as quick as they came. Kludd had looked back hesitantly though; wondering what Uglamore and Thora had tried to say earlier. He shook his head and flew out the hollow, Zarko standing on the exit to watch him go. A few seconds later, he sighed and turned towards them.

"So what was that all abou-"

"Kludd is _**not **_to know that Coryn is his son." He cut Uglamore off, staring at them with a deadly glare.

"What?" Clay interrupted. "The _embered monarch_ of the Great Tree of Ga'Hoole is the _son_ of the Pure Ones _leader?_"

"Ironic, isn't it? But remember that it wasn't exactly _Kludd_ who did all that. But if Kludd were to know Coryn was his son, he would be left heartbroken, shattered, knowing that his son despises him for something he didn't do. And Kludd would be too intent on seeing and watching him when he has the chance. Getting himself killed is what it would be; they don't know that he was Shattered, so he would be killed _again _on the spot. All I can promise is that when this is all over, I will try to find a way for him to be with Coryn, Soren, Eglantine, Pelimore- Soren's mate, and his three nieces, Bell, Blythe, and Bash. He has a family who wishes to live without him for they believe it could not happen, but _anything _is possible… so I hope."

And without another word, he went to another side of the hollow to attend to things, while the trio hesitated before flying off.

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><p><em>Two Days Later…<em>

"Where is Zarko?" Thora asked as she entered the hollow.

"I think he got caught up with something." Alcrus answered. "Might take him a few minutes."

"Which gives us the perfect time to explain to you all something." Alterran cut in. The Bay, White-Faced, and Crested Owls got on the opposite side of the two Barns, Spotted, and Snowy Owls. Alterran, Reiden, and Alcrus all looked at each other.

"Where to start?" Alcrus asked. Alterran sighed and stepped forward.

"From the beginning." He answered, then turned towards them. "Long, long ago, there was nothing but black. The world all started by the only thing existing, called and named God, said, 'Let there be life.' Thus, the sun, the Earth, all life, was born. He watched the world grow, so many species taking form. He had created the first of each species as lesser gods, such as Glaux- the first owl to ever exist. He also made a species known as 'man' from his image, and he lived on the land. Then he knew that the man alone could not do this, so he created something very similar, known as a woman. These were known as Humans, or what is here, known as, _'the others.'_"

"But before any of this ever happened, he knew that the world could not survive on its own." Reiden cut in, walking forward as well. "So he created four beings; _us_. He gave our abilities strength that stretches far beyond the reach of any other living being, making us faster, smarter, stronger, more perceptive, more resistive, and gave us immortality, letting us live forever on to watch the world. We were then to swear to use his gift to keep life going, and not for own selfish reasons, or anything else against the world of the living. We were also to serve him, and any other lesser gods. After this, we fought and lived together for years, decades, centuries… millenniums… eons… and so on. We had lived through almost all the major events of the world. We were _always _there; to see wars and discoveries alike. We always remained silent as a shadow, keeping our names and existence out of history. Why? Because if any evil were to rise, they would know something that could stop them, so we do it without being known. So if we are unknown to the evil, we would catch them off guard."

"Then one day, something changed Zarko." Alcrus now said cautiously. "We were on a mission as humans; we had a small team of the four of us, plus one young man, named James C. Peterson, but we all called him Lynx. On a mission, in some snow-capped mountains, we had completed our mission, but Lynx was hurt, _badly_. He had taken something called a 'grenade', which, you can say emits fire in some sort of way… too hard to explain, and had covered the blast with his body, saving all of our lives. He was also hit badly in the shoulder, but the burns were far worse. From looking at him then, we could see that his chest and leg were black and red, and leaking a lot of blood. When we had set him down just outside, help was too far away. Zarko had talked to him, trying to keep him alive by reminding him of his… mate, and unborn son. As his lights slowly faded, and his eyes began to close, we had gathered around him, Zarko with his arms on his shoulders. He then passed, slipping into heaven. He had made a request to tell his mate something, but Zarko tried to press him on to live. Then, we were attacked by the enemy. We fought them, covered our escape. But Zarko… he picked up Lynx's body and carried it all the way out, not letting up for a second. When we were gone, he had taken his Dog Tags, which are metal engraved ovals with their name, D.o.B., and other information. And he held them close and whispered, '_I will… I promise…'_ referring to his earlier request. Ever since then, he has hardly worked with us. That is why he doesn't work with us much; he can't bear seeing one of us die in front of him."

They three other owls stood there in silence, taking everything in. Kludd was the first to speak.

"I… I never would have thought that… you were Others- I mean humans…"

"I can't believe it; he died, in his arms?" Uglamore said, knowing what 'arms' are from other animals.

"Yes…" Reiden nodded slowly. "He had shaken his body and said his name several times, not willing to accept a young soul who was so close to him, earn a bloody death."

"So that is what's with him…" Thora murmured. The brothers sighed in depression.

"He fights for not only the fate of others, but for vengeance and justice as well, but he still fights for liberty- for freedom." Alterran walked to the side while facing the ground. "He regrets taking every soul with shame. At night, when he is alone, he sits on the ground, staring into a fire in front of him, remembering his past. Out of all of us, Zarko is the strongest, smartest, and everything. He can be tied up with a circle of highly trained enemies surrounding him, and it can be about a minute later, when all of them are dead with broken bones and dissembled wings and legs, as well as heads. Sometimes, he even leaves a spear, knife, or sword, through their beak, and out through the back of their head. He may be the best of us, but he pains them harshly."

They could actually remember some of this from their first attack on the Pure Ones in Ambala; he had been seen taking them down like it was simple as yarping a pellet.

"Feel free to talk to him about this; he doesn't like to explain it, but if you already know he will answer questions you have for it." Reiden said. After a few seconds, Zarko flew in.

"Sorry I'm late; got held up in a few things." He walked up to the stump and looked at each of them. "Need a report now; did anyone notice anything suspicious?"

"Not that I could see." Clay answered.

"Nothing." Thora said.

"Everything seemed normal." Kludd said.

"I actually think I saw one." Uglamore stated. They all turned to him. "I saw a Masked Owl being strangely quiet; he has been ignoring a lot of owls who talk to him, and every once in awhile, I see him leave during tweener and fly off to his hollow from the looks of it. I have seen him whispering to a few owls as well, but I could not get a good look at whom it is."

"I think I saw that, too." Alcrus agreed. "He seems to stick out but stand out at the same time. It takes awhile to notice him, but when you do, you pay a lot of attention to him."

Zarko nodded. "Alright, I want everyone on lookout. Clay, I need you to follow him during tweener tomorrow from afar; find out where he goes, and who he talks to. If it turns out to be Tytos, then there is a large chance that they are Pure One spies. Kludd, try to eat not too far from him at tweener. Thora, Alcrus, keep on watch in the library. Uglamore, Alterran, make sure no one else is keeping an eye on him; if the Tree has suspicions, then we need to keep them from tracking them down. If you find any of this, knock them out undetected, or create a diversion long enough for them to lose 'em. Reiden, try to earn his trust in some way; Bay Owls are uncommon Tytos, so you can try to convince him that Nyra or Stryker sent you. I will watch out for the owls left in charge of the Tree. Remember though that we still need to keep an eye out for any other ones. Questions?" They remained silent. "Good, dismissed."

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><p><strong>Man, I just got through watching Marvel's "The Avengers" in 3-D for the second time last night and my god… THAT IS ONE OF THE BEST MOVIES I HAVE EVER SEEN! Seriously, the humor parts in it made me LMFAO so hard! Anyways, about how Zarko, Alterran, Reiden and Alcrus came to be… I do NOT mean to ruin, or offended, Christianity in ANYWAY what-so-ever! I just want to make a good storyline, okay?<strong>


	7. Chapter 7

**YYYEEEEEEEEESSSSSS! I GOT MY LAPTOP TO WORK! I'M A GENIUS! Okay, I started working on this chapter the very DAY after the last chapter, but it kept on deleting itself. Eventually, it stopped working. My father looked into it, and he couldn't figure it out! The day it stopped working, I listened into a power box thingamajig and heard a buzzing every time it was plugged in. Just a few minutes ago, I got the stupidest idea. It also may seem weird, but… I stuck my tongue down the plug. I know, I know; it is indeed VERY stupid. It literally shocked me a little at first, but after about 5 seconds, I plugged it back in and it there was no buzzing. AND THEN I TURNED IT ON! I guess sometimes you gotta be dumb to fix something instead of smart XD**

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><p>"<em>It's got me! It's got me!"<em>

"_Where are they! Where'd it g- AGGHHH!"_

"_My leg! I can't feel my leg!"_

"_I'm a dead man! I'm a dead man!"_

"_There's too many of them! ACH!"_

"_Jesus Christ, we're all gonna die!"_

"_**Your time is running out, Zarko. Soon, you will die! You will suffer like the rest! You're broken body will hang, facing the world that we will destroy!"**_

"_Will I? I have no need to fear you! Why _should _I fear you? Because you have destroyed many brave souls? Because you have strength? Evil will _never _gain anything in victory! By the time evil is in the throne, there will be nothing left to rule! I may fight in fear, on this day, past days, and ones yet to come, but it is not fear for myself, but the lives I protect!"_

"_Zarko… _Zarko!"  
>Zarko quickly snapped out of his thoughts and looked up at his brother, who was giving him a worried look.<p>

"Something wrong, brother?" Alterran asked.

"Wrong? No, no; just thinking about the past."

"Oh, yes. Bloody times, brother, very bloody times…" Alterran looked down at the ground in slight depression.

"We are all brothers. We fight separately, but our bond is strong and unbroken. I only hope- even though to hope is easy- that we will all make it through all right. We are _all _brothers."

"You mean the other four, too?" Zarko nodded

"Yes… and sister. Though it is hard to lie to them, I once again, can only hope that the truth will come out to them all right."

"Hey, you do it for their protection! If Kludd knew about his relationship to Coryn, he would go haywire! Especially if he knew about him going to die; that would only get them _all _killed! It's like you say, 'When a sin is done righteously, it is anything but a sin'!"

"Hm, I guess you're right." Zarko hummed. "I assume you told them the story of Lynx?"

"Yep, we didn't lie though: We told them why you stopped working with us a lot. We didn't tell them why you are so focused on war." Alterran explained.

"Right, if I'm correct, there should be an army coming after Coryn's death. Nyra knows about this, and they are over three times as hard as Pure Ones. We need to stop Nyra, yet her death would only enrage the leader of the other army, her husband." He said, growling out the last to words angrily. Alterran sighed.

"Zarko, you, Reiden, Alcrus and I all know that it's not your fault. Revenge won't bring h-"

"I know." He cut him off. "But at least he will pay for his crimes, and the dead can rest knowing he won't harm another soul, and so can I. I still hold on to that past, and not a single second of it has ever slipped my mind."

"Just calm down." Alterran said, putting a wingtip on his shoulder. "I know that day was supposed to be the best of your life, but it turned into the opposite. I can still remember that ever since that day, you haven't slept (Not counting being knocked unconscious), you fight evil with little mercy, and you cover up all of those battle scars- souvenirs of the past… and that was all a very, very long time ago."

"I… I just wonder if it was noticed that I was being controlled. He made me take the life of the other, gave us both torture, one ending in death, the other ending in pain, while he gets joy for his own pleasure. Glaux, couldn't even so much as blink!"

"I know, I know… but we need to get to work; it's almost tweener and we're setting here talking about things that aren't the most important at the moment! I'll go catch up with Uglamore. You should probably go check up on Alcrus and Thora; they're probably bored to death."

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><p>Zarko entered the library to see only Alcrus and Thora reading a book, and Otulissa writing on the other side of the library. <em>Hm, guess she hasn't gotten "arrested" yet. <em>He began walking up to his brother and… Sister? Student? Comrade? Friend? Anyways, he walked up to them and heard their conversation.

"See?" Alcrus pointed out. "That is the advantage swords have over battle claws! They're longer, easier to forge, sharpen, and the only reason Theo had won with battle claws is because it was unexpected! They were unprepared, so they had the disadvantage of not knowing what they were up against. However, it is heavier and harder to carry."

"Yes…" Thora murmured. "Though I'd still prefer battle claws."

"I won't argue; they still are pretty useful."

"Learning more about weapons, eh?" Zarko said, making the duo jump. He couldn't help but chuckle. "Sorry; didn't mean to scare you."

"Of course you didn't!" Alcrus smiled. "What brings you here, brother?"

"Just wanted to check up on ya." He looked over at Otulissa, who was still writing, and then leaned forward and whispered, "Anyone come in or out yet?"

"No, I don't think so." Thora whispered back.

"You sure? You didn't notice me come in…" He looked back over towards Otulissa. "Excuse me, Otulissa?"

The spotted owl looked back at him, and blinked before approaching.

"Hello! Something you need?"

"No; just wondering if anyone has come in or out in the past moon cycle and got a book."

"Interesting, to say the least… well, no one has been reading actual books unless it is for Chaw quizzes or things like that. But a little before First Black tonight an owlet came in, but just got a joke book." She explained. He sighed.

"Okay, thank you." He turned around and began to walk away.

"Um, have we met?" She asked. He stopped and turned his head.

"No; not personally, at least. I'm just an old friend of the Great Tree's. Now, I'd love to stay and chat but I need to get going." And with that, he flew out of the hollow, giving Alcrus and Thora a "Stay alert" look on the way.

The three owls stared at the exit in silence for a few seconds until Otulissa broke it.

"Do you know him?" She asked.

"Yeah, of course I do! We're old friends! He's been a bit rushed lately, though. We were traveling and we decided to stop by here since we haven't come since… The Siege, I think?"

"You were there, too?" Otulissa said, surprised. "What were you doing at the time?"

"Oh, you know; killing Pure Ones, tending to wounded, delivering supplies, same as everyone else."

She nodded and looked over at Thora. She store into her eyes deeply for a few seconds, until speaking up.

"You look somehow familiar… Are you related to Madam Plonk, by any chance?"

Thora quickly thought this through as she panicked unnoticeably (To Otulissa), and answered,

"I don't think so; my family was all a bunch of Magpies traveling the Southern and sometimes Northern Kingdoms. I decided one day that I didn't want to live a nomadic lifestyle all for trade, so I parted with them and set out on my own. Not long later, I found this family, and I've been with them ever since." She held her breath, hoping it would work. Otulissa hummed for a few seconds.

"Hm, sorry; I guess I was just too quick to assume. I've got to get back to my writing now." She then turned around and returned to her book, still having her suspicions.

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><p>Clay watched the Grass Owl closely from above all over the other owls at tweener. He had also noticed that Kludd was sitting not too far away.<p>

Kludd had indeed been getting a few stares and glances, however. He got all of this, but no one ever said anything, thankfully. He looked at the Grass Owl as close as he could, understanding that he could not be caught starring right at him. So he kept his head down, facing the table, but his eyes on the prize. The Grass Owl looked around him, and stopped on Kludd. Kludd took his eyes off of him and looked down at his Milkberry Tea.

A few seconds later, he slowly turned up to Clay, who was out of view. He only nodded, signaling that he could look again. Kludd would've nodded if he wasn't hidden, so he just blinked twice, saying "Thank you." After that, he just looked down at his Milkberry Tea.

_I don't get it; why me? After everything I did, Zarko trusts me enough to bring me back from the dead when he hadn't even met me personally. Well, I was being controlled, so he can't really blame me… but how did he know I was Shattered? But more importantly, who? Who was it that decided to use me as his own evil puppet, make me be evil, and attempt to kill my brother?_

Before his thoughts could continue, he heard movement in front of him. He looked up to see the Grass Owl slipping out of the dinning hollow. He looked up at Clay again. He nodded as he flew off after the Grass Owl.

Kludd nodded back and slowly walked out of the hollow, looking back to make sure no one was watching him. Luckily, he was unnoticed, so he flew out.

It took him a few minutes to spot Clay perched outside the entrance of a hollow, listening in. Kludd quickly and quietly flew on the other side of the entrance. They gave each other a quick nod before putting their ear slits up against the outside of the hollow.

"Ha! Those dumb owls didn't even notice us leave!" One voice said.

"Yes; they're sloppy and don't deserve anything but extinction." Another said.

"Good, now then, what do you have to report?" Yet another voice came, which was probably the leader.

"They obviously don't suspect anything! These owls here are so caught up in their own personal problems!" The first voice said again.

"Not only that, but the _band _is gone, along with their so-called _'King!' _The perfect time to strike!" A third voice said.

"Good. Hey, Bay Owl! What's your name again?"

"Me?" A new voice said. "My name is Reiden." Clay and Kludd looked at each other.

_He made it. _They both thought at the same time.

"Well, anything you have to report?"

"I can say all the same. However, the owls left in charge are stupid; they've been worshiping the Ember and have left it unguarded. I have also received orders from Nyra; if we have the chance, steal the Ember and bring it to her. She'll even promote us all to General!" Reiden lied. This meant that they would have to stop them soon.

"Perfect! We will grab it at First Black tomorrow. Now get moving!"

They all flew out of the hollow in the matter of seconds. But as they flew out, none of them- except Reiden who looked back- noticed the two owls hidden outside of the hollow.

* * *

><p>"… And that's what they have planned."<p>

Zarko nodded at the situation, already having a plan.

"Alright, we got to move, now. We'll ambush them right before they grab the Ember. First off; Reiden, you clearly need to find them and stick with them, and warn us if anything happens. Do not reveal yourself until we have already engaged. Uglamore; keep lookout in case we got anything more coming, and when I say 'more' I mean literally _anything. _Alterran; keep Uglamore covered. Clay, Kludd and Thora; follow my lead and take down all of the Pure Ones in there- no survivors, no prisoners. Alcrus… I'ma need you to stand down on this one; stay at the Tree in case anything changes. After that, all of us leave; hide the bodies if we have time. Reiden, how many did you see in there?"

"There was at least seven, which was all I could see."

"Alright then." He turned back to everyone. "Everyone good?"

Everyone nodded. Zarko nodded back.

"Good… Everyone rest up and wake early. Now go." He finished softly. He turned around and began to walk away once they began piling out of the hollow. However, Kludd stayed.

"Hey, Zarko?"

"Hm?" Zarko turned his head in a nearly 180 degree angle to face him.

"Well… Can I ask you something?"

He blinked for a second, but then completely turned to him.

"Of course! Like I said before, you can ask or tell me anything." They sat down across from each other. "What is it you wanted to say?"

"Well…" Kludd hesitated for a moment. "I was wondering… Why was it me who was Shattered and forced to be evil? Ad will I ever get a chance talk or at least see Soren and Eglantine again?"

Zarko became quiet for a few seconds, but then sighed.

"Kludd… I'm afraid that you'll have to learn in time whom it was that Shattered you. This person, I know more than anyone. As for Eglantine and Soren… Now Kludd- You have to believe me; I WILL, no matter what it takes, if it even costs my own life that I will get your unintentional crimes to be forgiven. That way, you can finally communicate with them without them trying to kill you. You'll also have to meet your sister-in-law and nieces."

"Wha…? You mean…?" Zarko churred.

"That's right; you're an uncle. I hope they haven't learned too much about you, because it will be easier to get them to trust you." Zarko smirk at Kludd's surprised face. "And I'll make absolute sure that you, Clay, Thora and Uglamore will live no matter what."

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><p><strong>Again, very sorry for the unfortunate breakdown of my laptop. I hope this makes up for it. Now please R&amp;R! I'd really appreciate it and the more I get, the quicker and more I'll (Try) to update!<strong>


	8. Chapter 8

**Gosh, this is the most fighting I've put in a story so far (And also the worst, probably…)! Now then, I would like to send my thanks to Crazybird101 for being a great reviewer, and being supportive of the story. Next, I'm not only looking for a new title, but I also NEED a new description… PLEASE! I hate the description more than the title! As for the title, I just need something different because I feel that the word "Crusaders" doesn't exactly match the title; the group is pretty much fighting to protect the world, not for religion XD. So something that would match that. Also, I don't own any of the books (Except for #'s 1, 2, 3, 11 and LToG'H) so I might get events or something like that mixed up. And lastly… REVIEW! In the past four chapters, I have only gotten but THREE reviews from GuardianFan and Crazybird101 (Oh, and CB… I'd reply to your review but PM settings are off…)! If you people want to read more of this, then you gotta let me know that you really ARE reading! I don't care what you review, even something just saying, "Keep up the good work" or "Nice chapter" will do! Just as long as it's not really insulting the story, because things like that make me NOT want to post, but I still do (No offence, or anything...)!**

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><p>Kludd looked back once more at the sunset as he flew, and then turned back in front of him. He then saw a head poke out of the hollow he was going to and immediately recognized it as Uglamore. They quickly gave each other curt nods, and Uglamore pulled his head back into the hollow as Kludd landed inside. The two looked at each other and shook talons.<p>

"Glad you made it, Kludd."

"Thanks, Uglamore."

It felt strange to both of them calling each other by their names considering that one used to be the leader of the other. It was hard to get used to, but they didn't mind it. Kludd began walked over to everyone else and saw them battle-ready. But for the first time, Kludd took note of Zarko's appearance; his ivory mask's engraves were highly detailed, with roses, wind currents, and above his eyes was the design of a skull with… bat wings? Next, he had two swords sheathed on his back with a think material covering them, and the grips were not in the air, but down near his talons. Also, he had a pair of battle claws on his talons, with the same design as his mask. He was cleaning one of his swords also, and it was sharp enough to probably cut you by lightly dragging the tip across your skin, and also had the same markings.

Alterran had the same armor as Zarko and a pair of battle claws, but not as much engravings. Kludd, Thora and Uglamore all had the same; a normal ivory mask with a pair of battle claws.

"You ready, lad?" Zarko asked him without looking up from his blade.

"I'm all set." Kludd answered.

"Good." He said, and then stood up to face everyone. "All right, Pure Ones should be here in a few minutes! Uglamore and Alterran, hid somewhere near the entrance! Kludd, Thora, hide in different areas to get a flank on them! Don't strike 'til I do, got it?"

"Got it." They all said and moved out. Uglamore and Alterran hid on both sides of the entrance, Zarko hid at the top of the hollow, and Thora and Kludd hid on the sides. Uglamore leaned his head over to the entrance to see what was going on outside.

It wasn't long before Uglamore pulled his head back and held up a talon, signaling that they were coming. About twenty seconds later, two Barn Owls flew in, followed by about four Masked Owls, four Lesser Sooties, three Greater Sooties, three Grass, and one Bay (Reiden), making fifteen of them to kill, and one to work with. (Last chapter said that there was AT LEAST seven, not that it WAS seven)

One of the Barn Owls looked around.

"The Guardians are so interested in the Ember yet they leave it unguarded, heh." He smirked. He looked back to the rest. "Look around! Make sure we leave not a trace of us being here, otherwise I'll tear out your gizzard myself!"

They all quickly began searching around the room, but the leader, a Grass Owl, and Reiden walked up to the Ember.

"We'll be in a promotion for this!" The Grass Owl said happily.

"Hmph, we'll see about that." The leader replied, reaching out to grab the Ember.

"Sir!"

"Agh! What is it, Reiden?" The leader growled as he drew his foot back and looked at Reiden.

"I saw something- flying right outside the hollow, and I think they looked in." He lied.

"What!" He yelled angrily. He took a few steps towards the entrance, but was put down immediately by a pair of battle claws in his back.

The Grass Owl was about to react but gasped for air as his throat was sliced by Zarko's sword. All attention turned to them.

"Traitor!" A female voice came out.

"Kill them!" The other Barn cried out.

Five of the remaining twelve flew strait towards them, but one did not make it due to Kludd's battle claws digging into his starboard wing. When they reached them, Zarko held out a sword in a defense stance and as the extended talons reached him, they ran into his sword, splitting them both. Zarko then parried with the next two. Reiden flew towards the other one and they locked talons.

In the back of the hollow, two more fell to the ground as Uglamore and Alterran silenced them with their weapons. Uglamore looked out the hollow but a female Masked Owl saw this and flew back to them. Alterran took quick note of this and dodged the blow, and then put a claw in the back of her head.

Thora flew out of her hiding place and took the head of a Lesser Sooty, but was then met by a rather large Grass Owl. She flew port to evade the Grass Owl's foot, tried to hit him in the side, but his wing hit her, and sent her back.

Kludd was now fighting two Masked Owls and a Lesser Sooty. One of the Masked Owls lunged for him, but he earned a gift from Kludd; getting his port wing grabbed and being pulled to protect Kludd from a hit from the Sooty. The Sooty's eyes widened at this and lost one of them from a swipe of Kludd's talons, and pushed the corpse over on him. He ducked to evade a blow from the other Masked Owl and tripped him by pulling his other foot out from under him.

Kludd looked over and saw Thora still fighting the Grass Owl but was losing due to size. Thora took a scratch the chest and fell back. The Grass raised his talon up to finish it, but stopped short as he screamed out in pain. He fell over to reveal Kludd standing there, out of breath, with blood-stained battle claws. He leaned over and held his talons out to her. She took it and pulled herself up, with the support of Kludd.

"Thank you…" She said shakily.

"No problem; nothing I wouldn't do for a friend." He nodded. Kludd got caught up staring into her yellow eyes, while Thora was staring back into his black eyes. During this, a Greater Sooty flew in but was pushed to the ground with Zarko standing on top of him.

"Don't get too distracted now!" He told them.

"Zarko! We got Guardians coming! We've got to go!" Uglamore called over before plunging deep into a Grass Owl's gizzard, and was finished off by Alterran slamming his head into the ground.

"Racdrops!" He cursed, flying past Kludd and Thora to assist Reiden. "There's a lot more than what was in here at first! Must've had more guarding outside!" He kicked the Lesser Sooty attacking Reiden in the face, and then twirled around to decapitate him. "Only a few left! Keep fighting!"

Clay was taking on about four owls all at once, but was getting backed into the edge of the hollow. He was dodging and parrying every strike they hit him with. He tackled one of them, getting a small scratch across his face in the process, swung around and punched another in the beak, and grabbed his wing and slammed him into the other two. He went back to the first one he tackled and impaled him. He then turned back to the other three to see (Hey that rhymes!) Kludd picking one of them up and dragged his battle claws through his torso.

"Are you sure you saw something?" A voice came from outside the hollow. The Pure Ones and Zarko's team stopped fighting and turned their heads to the entrance.

"I'm sure! I saw about twenty owls flying up here!"

"Pft, whatever you s-" A Burrowing, Spotted, Great Horned, and Screech Owls were hovering outside the entrance, staring in shock at the scene.

"Um… He…llo?" The Screech said, shivering in shock as she blinked in confusion.

There was an uncomfortable silence between the three sides. It was broke when Zarko stabbed his swords in the necks of the last two Pure Ones and Dived through the four Guardians, followed by Alterran, Clay, Kludd, Reiden, Thora and Uglamore.

"After them!" A yell came from behind them. Thora looked back and saw about ten Guardians right behind them, and more joining as they flew.

"Can we make it?" Uglamore called up.

"We'll make!" He replied as he flew faster. "Just… Keep flying!"

Before they knew it, they were over the Sea of Hoolemere, and the yells grew quieter.

"We made it." Kludd said, looking back.

"Now what?" Clay asked, flying up next to him.

"Now… We continue our work."

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><p>"What!" The Band and Coryn shouted.<p>

"What do you mean the Tree was_ infiltrated_?" Coryn said as he leaned in towards the four owls.

"Well, um…" The Great Horned started. "A few days ago I thought I had seen a big group of owls go up towards the Ember. They wouldn't believe me, but when we went up…"

"There were corpses of Pure Ones all over the hollow, and we saw about seven owls killing them." The Spotted Owl finished. The Band looked at each other.

"The Pure Ones got in?" Digger whispered.

"But who were the other ones?" Gylfie whispered back.

"Did you see what they looked like?" Soren asked. The Burrowing Owl slightly nodded.

"Well, we didn't get a good look at them; they wore some sort of, shiny mask, two of them had engravings on their armor, but one of them had more engravings than the other, and had a pair of battle claws with two swords, who I think was the leader, and I couldn't tell what kind of owl he was. One of them though, had nothing but a pair of battle claws, and I think he was a Tyto. I recognized two of them as Barn Owls, both looking older than both you and Soren, your majesty. I think another one was a Snowy. I thought another was a Spotted Owl. I didn't get a good look at the last one, but he was one with the engravings." He explained. "Though I'm completely shocked, considering that there was only seven of them and about, twenty, thirty Pure Ones?"

They all looked at each other, and then nodded at the group of owls.

"Thank you, you may go now." Coryn said. They bowed and flew off. The Band all looked at each other.

"Do you think it was…?" Gylfie trailed off. Coryn nodded.

"I remember seeing them in my firesight, but I don't recall there being seven…"

"Yeah…" Soren agreed. "I don't know why, but the Snowy and the two Barn owls seemed familiar."

"It was them, no doubt." Twilight said. "But how did they know the Pure Ones were here?"

"I don't know, Twilight, I don't know…" Soren looked down as he thought. "But I'll ask Otulissa about this tomorrow."

They all nodded in agreement.

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><p><strong>Nothing like good ol' A7X to keep me focused XD! Also, I've been thinking of the pairing of Kludd and Thora, but I'm not sure... if you want to let me know your opinion, i got a poll on my profile! Anyways, R&amp;R, and sorry if the action was horrible!<strong>


	9. Chapter 9

**Again, thank you Crazybird101 for being a great reviewer, and for giving me a few ideas for future chapters. I absolutely LOVE it when reviewers give me ideas, and when humor is added in them! Next, I said last chapter that, I'd have that Poll up, but for some reason, it didn't go up, so now it is. Anyways, that's all I have to say for now…**

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><p>"Otulissa?"<p>

Otulissa groaned as she awoke, she looked over at the entrance to her hollow and saw Soren.

"Come in." She said. Soren nodded and landed in. "Why'd you wake me?"

"Well, I need to ask you a few questions." Soren answered, glancing back at the entrance.

"About what?" She asked, now curious. Soren took one last glance back.

"Well… I know you just got out of that prison that they made while we were gone but, while that was going on, the Pure Ones got into the Tree."

"What!"

"Yes, I know… but they were stopped."

"By who?"

"We don't know." Soren answered, sighing. "A few owls saw them flying into the hollow containing the Ember. They went up to check and they saw about seven owls killing all of the about… twenty to thirty of them. They left none of them alive, and flew away from the Tree. They recognized them as two Barn Owls, a Spotted Owl, a Snowy, and a Bay… but the other two were unrecognizable."

Otulissa was silent.

"A Snowy?"

"Yes."

She walked over to the wall of the hollow and looked down.

"A few days ago, before I was sent to that awful prison… I was in the library, and there was a Snowy and a White-Faced reading there. While I was writing one of my books, an owl came in. I did not recognize what type of owl he was, but he had a pattern of gray/black and white going down his body, and his eyes were orange. He asked me if any owls had come in lately and got any books lately. I told him that no one had gotten anything but Joke Books, and only read actual books if it was to study for a quiz in their chaws. I asked who he was, but he just said that he was a friend, and left. I asked the other two about him, and they said they knew him. The White-Faced said that they were here during the Siege, and they decided to visit. The Snowy though… she just looked so much like Madam Plonk! I don't know why, but she just seemed like it! She said that she was just from a family of Magpies traveling around the Kingdoms, but decided to leave and began traveling with them. I didn't completely believe her, though…" Otulissa turned around to see Soren with a shocked face.

"I thought she looked familiar, too… Could she be related to her?"

"Yeah, but she mostly seems like-"

"Wait, do you think…?"

"No, no, no! That couldn't be right! She died, didn't she?"

"I thought she did." Soren nodded. "I'll go ask Madam Plonk; hopefully she'll know something."

Otulissa nodded back as Soren flew out of the hollow. He flew straight over to Plonkie's hollow to see her talking to Mrs. P.

"Hello, dear!" His former Nest-Maid greeted him. "What brings you here?"

Soren just smiled at her and looked over at Brunwella.

"Madam Plonk, can I talk to you for a minute?" He asked. Ms. P had instantly sensed that something was wrong and decided to leave them alone. Madam Plonk nodded.

"Of course, Soren!" She answered. "What is it you wanted to talk to you about?"

"Well…" Soren hesitated. "What… Did you tell us everything about your sister?"

Her face fell in both depression and confusion.

"Yes…" She sighed sadly. "Wh-Why do you ask?"

"It's just that…" He explained all about what he had seen at Ambala and the Pure One's latest attack. "… And that Snowy, Otulissa noticed has a resemblance to you, and I noticed that she does indeed, have a black shade on her feathers."

Madam Plonk was now devastated, just as she was when she learned of her death.

"She… She's alive?"

"I don't know; it could all be a coincidence, or it could really be that Nyra didn't push her into her own forge." He answered as she looked at the ground. "I thought that you'd deserve to know. Even though it may not be true, you still have the right to know."

She did not speak; she just looked at the ground, unable to utter a word as a single tear formed in her eye.

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><p>"Ugh! Now we won't be able to go back to the Tree without getting questioned!" Thora complained as Zarko bandaged her chest.<p>

"Not quite…" Zarko replied as he finished up wrapping the bandages. "We were wearing masks, meaning that they would have to get a good look at us to know who we are. Without our faces, they'll have to identify us by color and natural designs. But by the time we go back there, we will most likely be forgotten about."

"Well that's good to know." Kludd muttered. "So, what's next?"

Zarko walked over to a map and pointed at Shadow Forest.

"We go to Shadow Forest. If you remember me mentioning the 'Middle Kingdom' about a week ago… that's where were going."

"What are we supposed to be doing there?" Uglamore asked as he approached the map.

"An owl named Bess; the daughter of an owl named Grimble who taught Soren and Gylfie how to fly and gave his life to get them out of St. Aggies, studies in a place called the Palace of Mists- a place where Humans, or 'The _Others_', once inhabited. She knows the Band, made up of Soren, Gylfie, Twilight and Digger. She learns that there may be a new Kingdom- the Middle Kingdom. She'll send a letter to Otulissa, telling her of the discovery. Bess'll stay at the Palace, but the rest will go to the Middle Kingdoms. While they're there, the Pure Ones will plan to kill Coryn, Soren, and the rest of the Band during their visit. In two words; _Slink Melf. _(Sorry if I got that wrong) Our job is to go there before they do, and ambush the assassination team. For safety reasons, we do not, I repeat, do NOT kill Nyra. Why? If we kill her then and there, then that would mean… Well, let's just say it's a bad idea. Anyways, we just need to take some of them down to give the Guardians and the natives of the Middle Kingdoms the upper talon. Once done with that, we leave. Before the Pure Ones get there, we'll camp out in a cave in the side of the mountain; I've already been there and got an outpost set up."

"So how exactly do we get there from Shadow Forest?" Clay asked, approaching the map as well.

"Good question… But I'll just show you once we get there. Is that all?" Zarko asked, turning back to them.

"Yes, sir!"

"Alright then… We'll leave in two days, so you'll have a little time to hang around here, but for now, get some sleep."

_Later…_

Kludd couldn't sleep. He was tired, but something was keeping him awake. He was just staring into nothingness as he rested, listening to thunder and the rain rapidly hitting the tree, and the flashes of lightning.

_Kill… Murder… Assassinate… I've been doing all of these things my entire life… But why? I know I fight to protect… But is it all really worth it? To risk my life? To die? To… Take a life and make it go no further?_

Another flash and the rumbling snapped him out of his thoughts. He looked out of the hollow and saw that it was pitch black, due to so many Stratus clouds covering the skies. He began to listen to the thunder, but then heard… A hammer? Blacksmithing?

There was no mistake; it was the sound of a hammer hitting metal, banging over and over again. He flew out to find the source, and it grew louder and louder. Eventually, he smelled fire- burning coal. And he began to see smoke and a small red light. He landed behind a figure that was bringing the hammer down on the anvil, creating something. He recognized the figure as-

"Zarko?" Kludd asked. Zarko stopped as the lightning flashed once again.

"Yes, Kludd?" He asked, slightly turning his head, and continuing to hit the anvil.

"What are you doing out here? Smiting out in the pouring rain in complete darkness?"

Zarko once again stopped, but this time, turned around completely.

"It does not matter where I work. It makes no difference whether I work out in the rain, in the sun, near a river, it makes no difference." He answered. "Is there anything else that brought you out here?"

"Well, I need to ask you another question…" Kludd asked, ashamed of asking him so many questions.

"No shame in how many questions you ask. No disappointment when you ask them." Zarko had sensed his feelings. "What is it you needed?"

"…Why do we kill?" He simply asked. This left Zarko silent for several seconds.

"Kill… Kill, murder and assassinate are all different, Kludd. Kill is when you take or end someone's life to protect, or prevent something bad from happening. Murder is when you kill for pleasure or personal revenge because it's fun. Assassination is when you kill someone for wealth, because you are paid to, or to end something either way it goes. There are three sides; good, evil and in the middle, is neutral. Kill is good, murder is evil, and assassination is neutral, meaning that it can be used for both sides. Such is the circle of life; we are born, we live with what we are given, and then we die. We find several things throughout our lives that are worth living for, but there are also things worth dying for. Everyone and everything is worth something."

Now Kludd was left silent at the answer; never in his life had he heard something like that!

"Was there anything else?" Zarko asked with no hint of annoyance or anger, but calmness.

"There was, actually. How do you know all of this? Like knowing about Otulissa being imprisoned, or the Middle Kingdoms?" Kludd asked, hiding his surprise from another flash of lightning.

"I know this, because I walked up all of the steps. When I got to the top, things weren't right, so I went back down. Now, I'm walking all of you up the steps, in a different course, to change the top. Sadly, we won't know what's at the top, but that is why we are climbing the steps- to find out what awaits."

Kludd barely understood this, but he figured it out. Kludd was about to take off when he turned around to ask one more thing.

"What are you making, anyways?" He was curious about what he was making. He had not noticed that he had finished hammering it and was now engraving it. Zarko smiled and looked up at him.

"See for yourself." He set it down on the anvil, and picked up another one and put it down next to its twin. He then put a torch above it.

Kludd was now shocked at what he was seeing. They were long with a very sharp edge like a sword, but it was empty and stood open like a triangle missing a line and inside them were leather straps. Kludd could not figure out what they were.

"What are they?" Zarko laughed.

"A little project I've been working on to improve my combat. I've made them thin and hollow so they can fit around my wings, and made them aerodynamic and bendable- as well as thin lines through them to make the air go through them- so I can fly normally with them on. So now I have not only my talons to fights, but my wings as well!" It was overall very impressive; a combat improvement placed on your wings without sacrificing flight problems- despite slight weight.

"Not bad!" Kludd complemented as he nodded.

"Well, goodbye then, Kludd!" Zarko smiled as Kludd flew off. He sighed happily as he turned back towards his newly-developed "metal wings" as he liked to call them. "Always great to have a conversation with a young friend."

He put them on and they fit perfectly around his wings, but left the feathers out. He looked over and saw some training dummies he had set up earlier.

"Time to test this new weapon out!"

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><p><strong>New chapter early! Why? Well… Guess what! SCHOOL'S OUT! HAHAHA! No more ghetto idiots for the rest of the summer! OH YEAH! <em>Sooo<em>, that means that there's going to be an increase in my updates for a time. So, please R&R!**


	10. Chapter 10

**NOTE:**** Since I do not have the book **_**The River of Wind**_** with me, I don't remember how to get to the Middle Kingdom exactly, so please tell me how! I avoided it in this chapter because I didn't want to get the scene wrong.**

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><p>"Ugh… What happened?" Claymore groaned as he stood, snow covering his face. He whipped it off and saw that he was on a snowy mountain, with an absolutely <em>beautiful <em>sight! "Wow… I guess Zarko was right! Now I just got to find them…"

He did not see the other four at all, and he was not familiar with the terrain so it would be hard to find them- despite living in the Northern Kingdoms, but he was younger. He flew around the mountains and saw something sticking out of the snow. It was a bit of a creamy brown color, which he recognized immediately as Uglamore.

"Hey, Uglamore!" He yelled, landing next to him and shaking him. "You alright?"

In response, Uglamore jumped up, startled. This made Clay jump as well.

"Great Glaux! Did you have to jump?" Clay asked, breathing harshly.

"Sorry…" Uglamore apologized. "I was knocked out, and it was getting hard to breathe… So, thanks for waking me…"

They both laughed at this.

"Anyways, where are we?" Uglamore asked, still breathing.

"I think we made it to the Middle Kingdoms… But I didn't see Kludd, Thora or Zarko anywhere." Clay frowned. They were stuck in a Kingdom they had never been to, or knew nothing about, and they were separated from the rest of their team. So how in Hagsmire were they supposed to find them?

"Whelp, we should probably start looking." Uglamore said, getting ready to fly off.

"But where are we supposed to look?"

"Did Zarko say he had a cave in the side of a mountain?" Clay nodded. "Well, we start by looking for it!"

And with that, Uglamore took off, Clay following suit.

They were flying for what felt like ages. They were freezing, even though their feathers were keeping them warm, they were wet from the snow. They had rarely found places to rest, and they had taken about ten minutes each time before they set out again.

"Will… Will we _ever _find them out here?" Clay said through his slightly clattering beak.

"We must! If we don't, we'll freeze to death! If they're not out here, then it's worth looking!" Uglamore replied, though he was also having doubts himself. They had noticed a blizzard blowing in and they knew that they needed to find shelter, and fast. "I only hope that they're alright…"

Clay could barely fly any longer, and he began to get memories, he saw Uglamore turn into the image of Jak, who was carrying the Mountain Claws- his family Heirloom. He could hear himself yelling, and they both began to fall. Clay could feel the ice blistering against his face, and he saw Jak crash straight into a rock. He was about to land on top of him, but both the rock and Jack disappeared. He began to wail as he was crashed right into the ground. He screamed in pain, and he heard a yell. Was it Uglamore? Then, a figure landed in front of him just as he blacked out.

…

Clay awoke with a gasp, only to groan as he clutched his head in pain, and his whole body felt like a tree had fallen on him! He realized that he was wrapped up in a blanket, and was warm. Clay took note that he was in a cave, and a blizzard was blowing harshly outside of the entrance, with a fire in the center.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Clam down!"

He noticed Zarko rushing over to him and pushed his foot down from his head. Clay blinked.

"Zarko? Wh- What happened?" He asked, and Zarko smirked.

"There was a bit of an accident on the way over here; the River of Wind pushed us out and we got separated. I found Kludd and Thora and took them to my cave, but then this blizzard started to kick in so I came out to look for you. When I found you, you'd crashed straight into the snow. It cushioned your fall a bit, luckily. Uglamore had landed next to me and we got you back to the cave quick. Once we got back, I wrapped you up with a blanket, took of your armor, and for awhile I'd put a warm rag on your head. Hope you don't mind." He explained. Clay blinked once again as he looked around, and saw Kludd, Thora and Uglamore sleeping peacefully around the cave. Clay couldn't help but sigh in relief.

"Thank Glaux… I thought I was gonna die out there…" He said as Zarko handed him some warm tea. He didn't know exactly what kind it was, but he didn't care. He took a drink and continued. "So, this is the Middle Kingdoms?"

"Yep; the most peaceful kingdom in the Owl World. Theo from the old legends came here to find peace, as for being a pacifist. He is known greatly around here for being the first H'ryth."

"Wait, Theo was here?"

"Yes, he was. I can explain it all to you later. Right now, you're tired and hurt… Just sleep for now."

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><p>Nyra flew across the sandy desert of The Barrens, searching the ground eagerly. She had left the rest of the Pure Ones for the opportunity she had been offered, which was one she did not want to miss. All she could see among the ground were cacti, rocks, and burrows all though out the desert. She had attempted to do this in a much easier way, but the Guardians along with the wolves had come and took the Book of Kreeth, stopping her from her plans that were much greater than anyone would've expected.<p>

She continued flying when she eventually noticed a burrow, surrounded by very large boulders and a few cacti. She grinned wickedly.

_At last! I see him personally after so many years!_

She flew straight inside the burrow, which led _deep _underground, until she got to the point where it was completely dark. Nyra loved this.

"My dear?" She said sweetly, grinning even wider. Torches on either side of her lit up, and revealed the tips of talons on the ground.

"Yes, my beloved Tyto?" Came the very dark and sinister reply, which made Nyra giggle.

"Oh, it has been so long since I have seen you! If only those retched owls had come later! We would've had the world in our possession!"

"It will be ours soon enough, my love. All it takes is patents, and then everything will become just the way we want it!" He replied. He chuckled darkly at the thought of blood stained throughout the world. "Blood and bones, slaves and weak, us on the throne of the world, taking what's ours… Nyroc, our son, must be killed. He is heading to a place called the Middle Kingdoms, along with Soren. This is the perfect time for us to strike, and cut off the… _'Light_.'"

"It discusses me just to so much as hear that, but I don't mind it coming from you. We will enslave every owl living, and then we'll take over all of these pathetic minds, and make them do our work. Even the gods will be our slaves!"

"In time they will be, dearest… In time they will be."

"But what of… The prisoner? And Zarko?"

"The prisoner we will keep for uses, but will use the prisoner to lure him in, blind him. Once this happens, they will both die, as will the rest of them!"

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><p><em><strong>*<strong>_**Long Yawn* Terribly sorry for extreme lack of length, but it will have to do for now, and thank you Crazybird101 for giving me the idea of the scene with Nyra and her husband… also, don't forget about that Poll! Now then, if you will just do me a favor and press on that button right down there…**

**\/**


	11. Chapter 11

**I'm so P. right now… Why? Well… I had over 1,400 words on here two nights ago, but then when I'm not typing at the moment, my older brother comes in, plugs it out, and takes it into his room to Skype with his girlfriend because she lives in Virginia and we live in South Carolina. I hadn't saved, and I told him he had to start telling me when he does that so I can at least save. And he says, "Well, whatever; not my problem." Oh. My. God. Really? He has a computer sitting right next to his room! The reason he doesn't use it to Skype is because he doesn't want to hear him, when I can hear him through the wall to the bathroom and through that wall to his room… So what is the point of it? I use the laptop because when I type my whole family can hear my typing, but as for typing in my room, they can't hear little constant **_**taps **_**from my room. And either way; when I do it on the computer, and he wants on, I get off for him, and he just pulls it up to see what I'm doing, yet he doesn't want me to know! And not only that, but my Beagle (Type of dog) was getting a bath today, and he was last, and I had to carry the frinkin' (Yes, frinkin') 40 lbs. dog in the bathroom. He's usually friendly, but this time, he bit me in the face, made a small hole, and left it bleeding! Good god! Now then, enough of my pointless rambling and excuses, and here is chapter eleven!**

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><p>Uglamore woke to the sound of fire crackling. He smelt wood burning at first, but then smelt something more; cooking flesh. He opened his eyes to see Zarko cooking a type of meat, and there was a lot of it. Uglamore could not believe his eyes.<p>

"Is that… venison?" He asked, shocked. Zarko turned around towards him and smirked.

"Yep, sure is." He answered. "I hunted it myself, and brought it back here. Owls can take them down alright, but most of them can't even lift them! As for me- well, I didn't have to look far, and I've carried heavier."

"Wow, you've sure got a lot of strength in you…" He murmured as he walked over while Zarko tossed him some.

"Eh, don't mention it; taking it back here was easier than climbing a tree without wings or legs." He joked. They both churred at this.

Uglamore turned and saw Clay still sleeping. "Glad you showed up when you did, otherwise he wouldn't have lived long, and the same goes for me."

"I'm just glad that you're both alive and well- Him being well enough just to need a goodlight sleep!" The two churred once again, silently not to wake the others up. Then Kludd woke not to the sound, but the smell.

"Some cooked meat at first black, just what I needed." He muttered as he walked over to get some venison himself.

"Guess you're hunger then, eh?" Zarko said, handing him some of the venison.

"Yesterday was pretty rough being suck out in a place we have no clue about… So yes; I' starving." Kludd replied, taking a bite of the delicious meat.

"Well, the wind was pretty rough and we got separated, so it could have been my fault for going through at the wrong time." Zarko admitted, making Uglamore chur.

"Oh, it wasn't your fault! Besides, how were you supposed to know?"

"We all make mistakes I guess, but whatever!" He smirked. By the time Thora and Clay got up Uglamore was already done and Kludd was about halfway through.

"Ah, great to see you two awake! Now go ahead and give yourselves some time to wake up; we'll be leaving in a few to show you around the place." Zarko informed as Thora approached him to eat, and Clay getting up slowly.

"Good, I can't wait to see around this place!" Clay said, but Zarko couldn't help but chuckle.

"You'll have to slow down a bit then; you're still recovering from yesterday! Don't wanna haul you back here in my talons!" He said jokingly, then turned around to get them some venison and whispered, "Been a long time since I've had a morning like this… Not since _he_ took over me and used me to kill-"

"You say something, Zarko?" Thora asked, concerned as he handed her the venison.

"Wha…? Oh, nothing- just thinking about the last time I had a morning like this." His answer was partially true.

"Oh…" Thora frowned, not exactly believing him. _'Well, from the way he seems I guess he doesn't get times like this too often…'_

"So, what is the history of the Middle Kingdoms?" Kludd asked, finishing up his meat. Zarko cleared his throat.

"As I told Clay last night, Theo, the first blacksmith from the ancient legends came here to find peace, and he did. He became the first H'ryth of the kingdom, and had written down dozens of papers telling about this place, as well as the N'yrthghar and the S'ytrhghar. The Kingdom's language is called, 'Jouzhen', and the owls are… well, they have shades that go from Midnight Blue to Turquoise, which is very uncommon, of course. And if it gets annoying calling this the 'Middle Kingdoms', then just call it the 'M'ythghar.' And if you remember, this is near the island we were on, and there are other kingdoms to the north and south of it, making this the center of it all."

"Really?" Thora asked, surprised. "So there is more than this just there lying across the unnamed sea?"

"Exactly. So much is going on in the west, yet not as much as there is in the east. The next kingdom is to the northeast of the Northern Kingdoms. But don't worry; we'll be going there when the time is right." He clarified. He looked out at the black sky and saw that it was clear and full of beautiful stars.

"I guess we're leaving now?" Clay asked. Zarko only nodded in response.

"Let us leave for now, and return later."

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><p><em>A few days later…<em>

"Are you sure the Pure Ones are coming?"

"Absolutely."

"Are you sure it's at this time?"

"Yes."

"And it's right here?"

"Certainly."

"A-"

"For the love of Glaux! I know they come through here, and they _will _come through here!" Zarko shouted, getting a little annoyed since his team was skeptical about them being in the right place. "And besides; Eglantine and Primrose passed through here a minutes ago! They came here to warn them about the Pure Ones attack, so they got here first."

"Sorry, I just hate waiting around here in the cold!" Kludd complained, since he had only been to the Southern Kingdoms and not the North, which meant that Clay and Thora didn't mind the weather.

"Well, you'll get used to it; we'll be going to colder places in the future." Zarko retorted. They were waiting on the edge of a mountain, with a small crater.

"I hope I do…" Kludd muttered, looking down at the fire they had made to keep them warm. They were all rather impressed that Zarko wasn't shivering at all- only the cold carbon dioxide coming from his beak. He stood tall, looking down below them in wait, but he would soon be fighting.

"I enjoyed being here, really." Clay spoke up, trying to start a conversation. "The snow-covered mountains, the glistening trees… I see why Theo came here to find peace."

"Yeah." Thora agreed. "Considering that no one knew about this place, there was no war here, keeping him the way he wanted to be."

"Right, so he lived here and taught this place how to live perfectly." Uglamore nodded, getting closer to the fire. "A perfect place to get away from violence."

"Living here would be perfect; if I were just a normal owl, looking for a home… this would be the place." Kludd said as he starred at the fire, and then looked over at Zarko. "Wouldn't you say, Zarko?"

All of them turned to look at him, and he was still facing the edge.

"This place is beautiful and peaceful; the two best nouns something can be. I always look at the mountains from a distance, and realize that all inhabitants of this place are very lucky to be a stranger to war. I'd also live here myself, but I had my eye on one place that could never get any more beautiful, and it will always be the same, forevermore…" He said, a faint and sad smile growing on his face.

"Had? Where was this? And why not anymore?" Thora asked, cocking her head. Zarko only sighed.

"It was a place far away from here, from all of the owl kingdoms. I had never gotten the chance live there, because war came in and surrounded my life."

"So why'd you step in to fight?" Uglamore asked. Zarko turned back to them, an unreadable look in his eyes.

"Because I'd vowed to keep balance in the world, and it has to be stopped." He told them, and the look he was giving had a hint of… anger? "War… Many always wanted to fight for fun, but then when they do, they realize everything that happens, and the risk of so much. Others did not want any part in it and knew the risk and why it happens, but once they somehow get in it, they realize that sometimes it cannot be avoided, and must be done. Why? War is nothing but a blood-soaked struggle for power shrouded in fear and its violence sometimes must be done to gain the opposite; peace!"

Everyone was taken aback by the last statement, but before they could say anything, Zarko turned back and squinted his eyes.

"They're here." That was all he said before taking off. The others immediately realized what he was talking about and flew after.

When they caught up to him, he was closing in on a bunch of Tytos who were unaware of his presence. The one at the front however, was wearing a Mu Metal mask, one that was all too recognizable. It was indeed, the mask of Metal Beak, and Nyra was wearing it. Kludd, Thora, and Uglamore looked at her with hate and discuss, but not Clay who didn't even know her. Zarko slowed done slightly to let them catch up.

"I count about twenty, quite a bit for an assassination team. Alright then, Thora; I want you to go for the rear area. Clay, Kludd; head for the center. Uglamore; you're with me. Remember; we don't want to kill all of them, just weaken them enough for the Guardians and Jouzhens, and let Nyra be the least injured. Now go." He darted for the owl to the right of Nyra and Uglamore went for one behind him, Thora went for to backmost duo, and Clay and Kludd went for about three of them in the center.

Zarko hit first, slicing the head of the owl with his metal wings, followed by shrieks and gasps. Uglamore then hit with a blow to the back on his target, sending him falling as an empty shell. Uglamore got attacked first, but easily dodged it and grabbed hold of his attacker's wing and throw him back into the face of another.

Thora was doing well at the back, taking down the first two like nothing but a breeze. She was then attacked by three more. The first one dived in on her, talons extended. Thora held up her talons and received the hit with a talon-to-talon fight. Another advanced on her and she let go of the first one and flew under him. Thora hit the second one from under, and then slashed the throat of the first. With Clay and Kludd, they were doing perfect.

Kludd hit his target at the same time as Clay, and drew immediate attention to them. The first one to strike was at Kludd, whom flew to the side to the side. The Pure One had looked back at him, but flew right into the sharpened battle claws of Claymore. The next two had both flown at Clay, attacking from both sides. Clay flew up and they both crashed into each other, battle claws going through their gizzards. Kludd flew behind Clay to take down an unnoticed attacker and saved his life. Clay turned around, thanking him, but then they saw three more flying towards them, and they got to work and defended themselves.

Back up front, though, Zarko was fighting Nyra in intense combat. Nyra swung for him, but missed. Zarko had reached his sword out in an attempt to wound her wing, but she dodged it and tackled him in the chest. Zarko barrel rolled to the left, getting out of the push. Nyra extended her wings to stop herself, and then flew back to Zarko. She flew in on him, battle claws ready. Zarko locked talons with her after sheathing his swords and they were stuck in a struggle. Nyra took this chance to look into the eyes of her attacker, and they were starring at each other's masked faces. Nyra then had her eyes widened.

"… You!" She yelled, recognizing him. Zarko couldn't help but churr at her surprised self.

"Well, well, Nyra… How's your _mate _doing?" He smirked, pushing her forward. Nyra broke the contact and backed off for a second, but then flew at him with a death stare.

"He'll be better than ever when I kill you!" She replied, missing her attack.

"Hm, I think not." He smirked, flying over to strike her wing. "_He _betrayed _me_! I don't know why he snapped, but I will stop him either way! He was always at my side!"

Nyra flew down to avoid damage, and then flew upwards and left very large gash in Zarko's torso, making him slightly grunt. Nyra chuckled darkly.

"And he was right to stop all of it and leave your pathetic purpose! You're weak! All of you pathetic fools are weak! You'll all burn on a pile of rotten bones and corpses! And there will be nothing you can do about it!" Zarko was focused on her, not even a hint of him caring about the heavily bleeding wound on his chest. However, he only smirked.

"Weak… I am not weak. _We _are not weak! _Light _is not weak! _Righteousness _is not weak! Both sides are even, but I know that there is a shadow in the light, and there is light in the shadows! In the end, one will triumph!" He replied, pulling a sword on her. He dived towards her at blinding speed, and before Nyra could even blink, her skin was open in her lower right body. She screamed in pain.

"Then we will see which is stronger!" She screamed back, but Zarko only chuckled.

"One day… But today, we are victorious." He smirked, widely. Nyra was confused but then a blue blur caught her attention.

She looked at the blur, and saw a blue owl attacking her remaining soldiers. When she turned around, Zarko was not there, and neither were his friends.

* * *

><p>"Well, glad to be out of the cold!" Uglamore said, cozying in the hollow of their island.<p>

"Yeah, no kidding." Kludd agreed, sitting next to him. Thora just sighed as she walked past them.

"It wasn't _that _bad!" She muttered. They both gave each other a glance, but shrugged it off. Clay was silent as he stood behind Zarko, who was writing in a book.

"What are you doing, Zarko?" He asked. Zarko didn't stop writing.

"Recording my history." He simply answered. "For anyone in the future who becomes curious about my past; I remember every detail I go through, and at the end of every day I write the events of what had happened."

"He long would it take for someone to read all of it?" Zarko was now silent for a moment, but eventually began silently churring, but eventually, it grew into roars of laughter. It took about a good twenty seconds until he answered.

"Oh, Clay… I've been alive longer than every living soul on this planet! You could read for your whole life and you wouldn't get finished!" He answered, containing laughs. "But thanks for the good laugh!"

Clay was now laughing with him in, "Guess I just got too curious!"

The two laughed for a few more seconds until Zarko walked over to address the group.

"Whelp, it's great now that the mission was successful, and the next one won't be for a while, so rest up for a good while!" He announced, and then walked back to his book. All of them had left except for Uglamore. "What is it?" Zarko asked as he continued his writing. Uglamore hesitated to ask.

"Well… Earlier I sort of overheard your conversation with Nyra… What were you talking about?" This made Zarko stop immediately. He was frozen as a statue. Eventually, he slowly turned his head, and then he completely faced him.

"That was all just about the past, which is not important at the moment."

"But who is he? Her husband?"

"… All I can say is that he and I have a… History… We used to get along, and very well. He wasn't always evil, but he was a lot like me." He was explaining it in a tone like something was disturbing him greatly and with anger. Uglamore could tell that he must have done something to Zarko that he wasn't happy about. Uglamore just nodded in apology and flew off.

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><p><strong>And another piece of the puzzle is placed! I need people to vote on the Poll, PLEASE! Not one vote yet! And Crazybird101… I love your eagerness of Nyra's husband! I guess I should give you a clue to his name, and here is the code I got!<strong>

**Tango, Charlie, Uniform, Romeo, Sierra, Alpha.**

**Hey, I didn't say it would be easy! Anyways, here are a few more hints! (In a very, very easy code…)**

**Z ^ a ^ r ^ k ^ o ^ ^ h ^ a ^d ^ ^ k ^ n ^o ^ w ^ n ^ (The Name Above) ^ ^ w ^ h ^ e ^ n ^ ^ h ^ e ^ ^ w ^ a ^ s ^ ^ m ^ u ^ c ^ h ^ ^ y ^ o ^ u ^ n ^ g ^ e ^ r ^ , ^ ^ a ^ n ^ d ^ ^ l ^ a ^ t ^ e ^ r ^ ^ f ^ o ^ r ^ ^ a ^ n ^ ^ u ^ n ^ k ^ n ^ o ^ w ^ n ^ ^ r ^ e ^ a ^ s ^ o ^ n ^ ^ d ^ i ^ d ^ ^ s ^ o ^ m ^ e ^ t ^ h ^ i ^ n ^ g ^ ^ t ^ h ^a ^ t ^ ^ " ^ L ^ e ^ f ^ t ^ ^ a ^ n ^ ^ e ^ m ^ p ^ t ^ y ^ ^ h ^ o ^ l ^ e ^ ^ i ^ n ^ ^ h ^ i ^ s ^ ^ h ^ e ^ a ^ r ^ t ^ . ^ " ^**

**Hope that's readable, because it took me a good fifteen minutes just to do!**

**Also, the website ****got this new thing, and it's for book covers! So if anyone wants to do one for this story, be my guest!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Man, I just am not happy; I had a dentist appointment for the molds to get my braces, and it wasn't so bad… until they put those ring-things In between my molars which I got to keep on for five days (Today is the second day), and they hurt like a... Never mind. And I just found out something REALLY amazing! I had an uncle named Jason Martin, and in Copperas Cove Texas he was caught breaking into a house. The cop had patted him down for weapons, but didn't find a 38. Caliber he had hidden, and in prison he shot himself. But here's the catch; they say he's haunting the PD now, and that his blood stains that they had cleaned off the wall and painted over, keep coming off… HOLY CRAP! MY UNCLE IS HAUNTING THE COPPERAS COVE POLICE DEPARTMENT! Seriously! Check "Copperas Cove Texas Police department paranormal" or something like that!**

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><p>Kludd slowly began to awake as he heard flapping outside his hollow. He blinked tiredly and saw Uglamore land right outside his hollow. (Seems I just have been starting chapters with someone waking up lately…)<p>

"Kludd, get up; Zarko has got the next plan of action ready and he wants us to head to his hollow." Uglamore quickly explained.

"Eh, I enjoyed the break while it lasted." He said to himself as Uglamore took off. He peeked out of his hollow and saw that the sun was setting at the time, meaning that Zarko wanted them to leave in not too long.

By the time he arrived at Zarko's hollow, all of the others were already there.

"Glad to see you all awake, but our breaks over, and Alcrus has informed me of our situation." He started. "We are going back to the Great Tree; one of the Jouzhens named Orlando, or 'The Striga', as he likes to call himself, had saved Soren's daughter Bell back at the Middle Kingdoms, and has gained the trust and utmost respect of the Tree. This is not good. The Striga has brainwashed Coryn and has led everyone to believe that the Band has betrayed them, and is working with the N'yrthghar. This is false information obviously, and he also wants Bell as his very own daughter. Not only that, but he has troops going around the kingdoms and has burned items that are attached to their owners and has mainly burned books. In order to stop this, we must go into the Great Tree and take down as many of his soldiers as we can without being noticed, and we need to stay the night there to help for when the Guardians take back the Tree."

"But how will we go in without being noticed?" Uglamore asked. Zarko already had an answer.

"Punkie Night; they always dress up as something, wearing a cloak and a mask, and that is our chance to get in. In order to recognize each other, I've made our cloaks a shade of violet, with a large cross on the back. Clay's is light blue with a Sooty mask, Kludd's is red with a White-Fronted Scoops mask, Thora's is yellow with a Great Horned mask, Uglamore's is green with an Eagle Owl mask, and mine is white with a Spotted Wood mask. Alcrus has agreed to give us some help on this, so his is an orange cross with a Boreal mask. The plan is to find any of his owls, and take them down without being noticed. Understood?"

They all nodded.

"Good. Now then, there won't be any suspicion in us going in together due to them being focused on celebration, so there won't be many problems. We'll get into the cloaks at a stopping point in Silverveil, and then take off for the Tree."

_In Silverveil…_

"Wow, nice job on these cloaks!" Thora commented, looking at her back and saw how it fit her perfectly.

"Yeah, and a good way to hide yourself, too." Clay agreed, putting on his mask.

"Go ahead and put them on to get used to it if you'd like, but we won't have to until we get there." Zarko told them, walking in to revile his black cloak, which was unlike theirs and his hood was already hiding everything but his face.

"How'd you get them to fit us?" Uglamore asked, looking down at his Eagle Owl mask.

"I have my ways." Zarko answered. "But we still need to get to the Tree before it's too late. Anymore questions before me move on?"

"Why is your cloak black?" Thora asked.

"I've had it for a very long time now, and it's probably older than you." He explained.

"Then how come ours are violet?"

"I didn't have the materials." Zarko answered firmly. "Anything else?"

"I have one!" Kludd said, making everybody turn to him. "But I'd like to say it alone…"

Everyone nodded in understanding and took off, except for Kludd and Zarko.

"What is it you wanted to ask me, Kludd?" Kludd was silent as he hesitated, but then said,

"Lately these past few Moon Cycles, I've been feeling weird… I don't know why, but it just happens sometimes, even when we first got to the M'yrthghar and you were searching for us it came on. It just comes up from time to time every once in awhile when I'm around everybody…" Kludd slowly explained, and now Zarko was interested and concerned.

"Really?" He hummed. "What is usually the situation when this happens?"

"Mostly just when socializing, and sometimes in a battle."

"When did this start?"

"I think around the fight back at the Ember in the Great Tree." Now they were both silent… that is until Zarko began cracking up. It was all deep and silent at first, but it grew and grew, and eventually it sounded like someone being tickled to death!

"Oh, Kludd! You wouldn't believe me if I told you!" He resumed his loud churring, leaving Kludd confused.

"What is it!"

"You really want to know?"

"Yes!"

"You're dying."

"WHAT!"

"Just kidding!" He began laughing again, until it died down. "A little hint; roses, hearts, the letter 'L'?"

"I don't get it."

"Owlet?"

"No."

"All else I can say, is that it is very common, and it requires another owl." He was now smirking widely, and Kludd was just plain confused. "Glaux, Kludd… I'm sure you can figure it out!"

_At the Great Tree…_

"Hey, is that the Tree up ahead?" Clay asked, seeing lights and an island across the dark sea.

"Yep, so get your masks on!" Zarko ordered. They all nodded and put them on, and they were almost completely unrecognizable. "Remember now, we need to take down as many as we can without drawing attention to ourselves. In order to recognize who the Striga's soldiers are, try and look out for them taking things that belong to owls and burning them. Each of us needs to take down about three to five of them so they don't start to notice the loss in their numbers. And remember, if you hear them talking, try to eavesdrop!"

They all nodded once again as they approached the crowd of dressed-up owls and immediately split up.

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><p>"Ah, so good to see you again, my dear Nyra!" The owl hidden in the dark said to his mate. "Now what is this important news you bring me?"<p>

"It's about him; Zarko." Nyra said, looking at him through the dark. "When I was in the Middle Kingdoms to on the Slink Melf mission, he ambushed us with four other owls and took down over half of the team. They killed them yet the only one of them to get wounded was Zarko, caused by me. They held out until we were attacked, and then left without a trace of us being noticed."

Her mate was silent now, and then hummed.

"It seems Zarko is trying to prevent our plans… When will he ever learn to give up?" He spat darkly. "All those years ago in Tyto Forest… He helped me with my plans before I even had them…"

_Flashback…_

"_Glaux, Zarko, what are we doing here anyways?" He asked as they flew through the forest._

"_Just looking for a couple of owls, and then just let me handle it all!"A much younger Zarko replied as he scanned the area below. "If you didn't want to help then why did you come with me?"_

"_Because I wanted to get some action! See some fighting!" Nyra's (Soon to be) mate replied, making Zarko only churr._

"_Well, it depends if they are getting attacked or not, and then you might get your wish!" Zarko said, looking down until he saw something that caught his eye. "Looks like you get it after all, because I see one of them right down their!"_

_He blinked and saw on the ground a Barn Owl getting pushed around violently by what looked like a group of about five bandits. They flew in behind the tree they were next to and peeked around the corner._

"_Well you'd better give us what we want before we have to get rough!" The leader yelled. "Now hand it over!"_

"_No!" The female Barn Owl replied. "My mum gave it to me, and I won't just give it away!"_

_They heard a roar of laughter from the bandits._

"_Well, you'll not have anything to get from her left once we're through with you!" They heard a screech of fright and Zarko was on the leader in flash, his battle claws tearing through his flesh._

_The next two were on their way up behind him, but the other owl with him flew and took them both down with one swift hit, not even showing any emotion. He looked up at the last two and went towards one of them and locked talons into his eyes. He screeched in pain as blood poured out of his sockets, but they eventually stopped as he was lifeless._

"_Behind you, A-!" Zarko never finished he sentence as he cut the last one's throat without even looking. "Never mind, then."_

_They turned to the Barn Owl and saw that she was barely awake, with several cuts going through her body._

"_We need to get her out of here, and fast." Zarko said as he picked her up with his talons. "I know a place not too far away from her, so let's go!"_

_Zarko darted off towards an area leading into the center of Tyto, where the other owl he was looking for was._

"_What is your name?" Nyra's mate asked as he flew in next to them._

"_M-M-Marel-rel-ella…" She stuttered quietly as she could barely speak._

"_Beautiful name, Marella." Zarko complemented as they flew deeper into the forest. "Just hold on; we're almost there."_

_They continued flying until a hollow came into view, and Zarko gave Marella to the other owl as he flew next to the entrance._

"_Is anyone here?" He called in, and a few seconds later, a male Barn Owl flew up to him._

"_Who are you? What do you wan-" He stopped short when he saw Marella, and then turned back to Zarko. "Get her inside, quickly!"_

_They nodded and quickly got her inside the hollow and put her down on some rabbit ear moss._

"_She has several wounds all over her body! Do you have anything to help us?" Zarko asked him. The Barn Owl only nodded and looked back over and called, "Ms. P! Get some bandages and get in here!"_

_They kept pressure on the wounds until a Nest-Maid Snake came over with some bandages._

"_What is the emergency Noctus?" She asked but then saw Marella in her state, and she immediately knew what to do._

_After they were done tending to her wounds, she was silently sleeping as Ms. P tended to her, and the others talked._

"_What happened to her?" Noctus asked._

"_We were traveling around until we saw her getting attacked by a group of bandits. We stepped in and stopped them before they could do anymore harm, and this was the closest place. Her name is Marella, but that is all we know about her sadly." Zarko explained, not telling the complete truth. "Thank you for helping us."_

"_Oh, it was the least I could do." Noctus bowed his head. "I don't think we've properly introduced ourselves. I'm Noctus, and the Nest-Maid is Ms. Horace Plithiver."_

"_My name is Zarko." Zarko nodded. "And he is-"_

"_I'd rather keep my name to myself." Nyra's mate said, holding up a wing._

"_Hm, I guess that's fine." Noctus said in understanding."Would you like anything to eat or drink?"_

"_I'm sorry, but as much as we'd love to and help with Marella we have to get going." Zarko quickly explained as he lifted into the air. "We have a very important meeting with the Great Tree."_

"_The Great Tree of Ga'Hoole!" Noctus said in shock. "Isn't that just a legend?"_

_Zarko merely chuckled._

"_All legends and Myths are true."_

_End of Flashback…_

"That day was meant for peace, yet it never happened." Nyra's mate said sternly. "Be on the lookout for him, but do not go looking for him: He will come to us."

"And what of the prisoner?"

"Keep the prisoner in the same place, and we'll go from there."

"As you wish, my love."

* * *

><p><strong>Another shocker to the past! And last chapter I put a code for his name… I put it wrong; it was meant to be "Sierra, Alpha, Uniform, Romeo, Tango, Charlie." I put it one way, but then put it backwards but it didn't go quiet as planned… But now you know that his name starts with A! (Alpha)<strong>

**Re CrazyBird101- Well, I signed up to it a while ago but I don't really know how to work it, so… Yeah, you might want to explain it to me XD**


	13. Chapter 13

"Where are we going this time?" Kludd asked as Zarko led them back to the map. "The last mission was pretty easy…"

"I know it was." Zarko agreed. "But this time, we got another Pure One outpost in The Barrens, and they're getting an army ready for the upcoming war. Once again, we must take it down and steal any of their plans. They aren't expecting to be found, so it should be easy. We are looking at a good… twenty, just about? This shouldn't take long, but it'll be worth it." Zarko looked back at them, and they were all looking at him intently. "Any questions?"

"Why don't we just find a way to take down the army?" Uglamore asked, looking through the marked area of Pure Ones.

"It's no joke when it's an _army_. The outpost is just a lookout that gets all of the messages. The rest are hidden and over five hundred strong; we can't fight them alone." Zarko answered, pointing out the area between the actual army and outpost.

"So what do you expect to find there?" Thora asked.

"Nothing much; just messages, status reports, things like that." Zarko simply answered again. "But you can never be too sure."

"So when do we leave?" Clay asked, wanting to get ready.

"In a few hours; just so you can get some rest and get your gear together." He told them, and went over to continue writing.

They all nodded and flew out, but while flying back Clay nudged Kludd.

"What is it?" Kludd whispered. In response, Clay only motioned with his head for them to land, and they did. "What's wrong?"

Clay looked over at Thora and Uglamore as they got further away, and then turned back to Kludd.

"I need to talk to you for a moment."

"Well… Obviously…" Kludd muttered sarcastically, but Clay only sighed.

"The thing is… What did you ask Zarko a few days ago, right before we went to the Great Tree on Punkie Night?" He asked with a serious tone. Kludd cocked his head, but answered.

"I told him about some sort of strange feeling I've been getting lately, like when talking with everyone. He asked me when it started and I told him that it was back in the Great Tree when the Pure Ones were trying to steal the Ember. He just started laughing and gave me some strange hints…" Kludd explained. Clay only nodded and hummed for a moment.

"Great Glaux, I wasn't wrong!" He said to himself. "Just as I had figured at that moment, when we were fighting!"

"What is it!" Kludd asked with confusion and Clay frowned, but it turned into a smirk.

"Tell me Kludd… How do you feel about Thora?"

Kludd only blinked, almost completely understanding.

"Don't tell me…" He trailed off. Clay only smirked wider.

"Apparently! You never understood it because, well… You don't remember how it felt with Nyra because it wasn't you!" Clay said.

"I… I need to talk to Zarko again." Kludd said as he flew back to Zarko's hollow.

"That's fine and understandable." Clay replied as Kludd flew off.

When Kludd got to his hollow, he stopped outside as he heard something. It sounded like… He didn't know, but it was great! It had a low pitch sound playing in the same rhythm, and a higher pitched one playing different sounds. Kludd was actually enjoying the interesting sound until it suddenly stopped. He frowned and then he heard movement. He flew inside and saw Zarko, but he looked much different. Kludd blinked and used his talons to rub his eyes.

_Am I seeing things? _He thought to himself, believing he was tired. When he opened them again, he was still the same.

"Zarko?" He called, making him stop and turn towards him slowly. Kludd could not believe what he was seeing; Zarko had scars and dried blood all over him that it was enough to believe he'd been to Hagsmire and back. The ones that were mainly noticeable was one going from above his left eye, down past his beak, and stopped at the end off him face below the other eye. Another one was on his face again, but it curved below his left eye. The last one on his face looked like it had gone for his eye, hit the skin above and below it but missed the eye itself. On his chest, there was one going from his upper-right shoulder, and down almost to his left foot. The next was large on his lower body but grew smaller as it went up, and this one was identifiable as the one Nyra had recently made. On his right wing, it looked as if a Great Gray had attempted to tear it off, but it was perfectly in place. All of this made him uncontrollably stutter. "Wh-Wha-What in Hags-Hagsmire's name happ-appened to y-you?"

Zarko only sighed as he faced him, and he had at least twenty other scars on his body.

"Kludd… This is the real me- Stained in blood and covered in scars. The blood can be washed off… But the scars are an effect of a non-aging body; they're stuck there for eternity. I've fought so many minions of Hagsmire as an owl, and I've never gotten through them untouched. Earlier I said that we couldn't take down an army without help, but I've taken down well over enough with nothing but my blades and I was most often victorious. Why I never let anybody know is because if they are to know I could be seen to betray a side and rip them down to the bone, while others would fear and cower at the very mention of me, and some would even seek to control me. The point being is that I'm so powerful that nobody trusts me, even when I kill only evil." He sighed sadly once again, and held his wings out to the side and they began to glow as all of the scars disappeared. "I hide the scars to avoid being the center of attention, and so I won't be taken for anything like a Hireclaw. I can use magic, yes… But I try to avoid using them."

They were both in an uncomfortable silence.

"Anyways… What is it you wanted to tell or ask me?" Kludd shook of the shock and looked at him with a very serious face.

"Is it true?"

"Is what true?"

"Is it really… That I'm falling _in love _with Thora?"

Zarko smirked.

"Clay told ya?"

"Yes, and I came here to ask if it was true."

"Well it's true alright, and I figured just as soon as she and you were stuck starring at each other in the middle of the fight." He smirked wider, nodding. "I don't know how she feels, but I'm not going to just go up to her and ask!"

"So how do I deal with this?" Kludd asked worriedly. "We are both owls, but I'm a _Barn _Owl and she's a _Snowy _for Glaux sake!"

"Kludd…" Zarko started off, another little speech ready. "It doesn't matter who or what you love. It can be good and evil, owl and owl, owl and something else- It just doesn't matter! All that matters is that they love each other."

Kludd blinked again, as this was by far to most _unexpected _thing to _ever _hear him say.

"If you want to act on this, I can help, but if you want to hold all of this for now, then I suppose it can wait."

"Yeah, I think we should hold this… and I need to get some rest."

* * *

><p>"Here we are; main hollow." Zarko said as they approach one of the very few trees in a very small oasis in the entire desert. All of the other owls had been taken care of silently, and now they were about to go into the final hollow where they got all of the messages and reports.<p>

"Sounds like they don't know we're here." Uglamore said as he put his ear slit up to the hollow entrance.

"Good. Uglamore will help me take down the down the owls near the leader and we'll take him or her alive. I want Clay to get them away from what we need. Last but definitely not least, Kludd and Thora needs to take down all of the rest. We'll go in, in that order on my mark." Zarko ordered, getting next to the entrance with Uglamore on the other side, with Clay and Thora behind Uglamore and Kludd behind Zarko. Zarko began whispering a countdown.

"Five…"

Thora clicked her battle claws.

"Four…"

Clay tightened his grip on the wood he was perched on.

"Three…"

Uglamore looked back at the duo behind him.

"Two…"

Kludd glanced around him.

"One…"

They all tensed up.

"GO!"

At the yell they all charged in.

Uglamore saw three owls on the left side of the hollow and went for the owl to the right of the leader (Who was determined by the different mask) and cut his gizzard open with his mighty battle claws. The one to the leader's right was decapitated by Zarko's right metal wing as he flew towards him, and put his swords through the outer sides that wouldn't cause much damage.

The Pure One who was looking through the papers they were looking for at the other end of the hollow had turned his head only to get his neck opened by the battle claws of Claymore. Another one swung from behind him but Clay ducked and got him in the gut, and then gave uppercut with extended talons under her head.

Kludd Struck a Pure One on the left side of the hollow and showed no mercy. The next charged him, but Thora had come from over Kludd to remove his eyes. The next two came from their right and Kludd tackled both of them and plunged his battle claws deep into the one on his right. The one to his felt got out from under him and caused Kludd to fall flat on the ground. The Pure One quickly got up and got ready to finish the job, but was pushed into the wall of the hollow by the Snowy Owl.

Thora looked over at Kludd and held her foot out to him.

"Déjà vu." She smirked as Kludd got up with her help.

"This time our positions were switched, though…" Kludd muttered as he nodded and walked over to Zarko who was going towards Clay while the leader just lay there with some blood coming out, but barely anything.

"Ah, here they are!" Zarko said as he picked up several papers and began reading them. He began humming for a few seconds until he stopped. "What…?"

He seemed frozen as he read the papers, until he dropped them. He was now still as a statue, not even breathing.

"Zarko?" Thora asked, very concerned about his shocked state. Zarko didn't move nor reply.

"What's wrong?" Kludd asked.

Zarko was still silent, until he quickly picked up the papers and shoved them in Kludd's talons.

"Get these to my brothers as quickly as possible; they're regrouping at the island to share what they have found. I don't care what it takes; just get to them and DO NOT look at the papers. Understood?" He explained as fast as he could, and they all nodded. "Good. Now if you don't mind…" He turned back to the last Pure One they had left alive, and approached him slowly. "Someone has some questions to answer…"

Kludd only frowned confusingly. He was about to ask why but his former soldier put a talon on his shoulder.

"Let's go!" Uglamore said as they flew out of the hollow.

* * *

><p>"Where do you think they are?" Thora asked, out of breath from the non-stopped flight.<p>

"They're probably in that hollow Zarko showed us." Clay suggested. They nodded in agreement and when they got to the hollow, Alterran, Alcrus and Reiden were all looking at them.

"Good to see you here again!" Alterran greeted with a smile.

"Where's Zarko?" Reiden asked as he looked at the group. The other two nodded in agreement.

"We don't know." Kludd explained. "He was looking at the Pure Ones plans and he just dropped them and stood like a statue for a few seconds. Eventually he just gave them to us and said to bring them to you as quickly as possible."

Kludd reached into the pack strapped into his leg and pulled out what Zarko had given to him, and then taloned (Just thought it would make sense since they don't have hands) them to Alterran.

"Hmmm." Alterran hummed until he got to the same part Zarko had. "What in the…"

He lowered the papers and silently store into space.

"What is it, brother?" Alcrus asked as he took them and put it to where he and Reiden could both read.

"Oh. My. Glaux." Reiden whispered as he rolled them up. Alterran turned around and addressed his brothers.

"We have to find out where to go, and fast!" He shouted to them. Kludd walked up to him and tapped his shoulder.

"Um… What's going on?" Kludd asked. Alterran turned around to face them.

"The only thing we need to explain now in a short version is- Well… Let's just saw when something ticks Zarko off, he gets a little too… Angry."

* * *

><p>"And they saw the fire coming from an oasis in The Barrens?" Soren asked as the messenger to confirm what he was hearing.<p>

"Yes, sir. We are not certain what happened, but I don't think it was just a natural cause…" The messenger said. Soren nodded.

"You are dismissed." Coryn said as he had heard enough. The Band along with Coryn gathered around each other. "I think it was them."

"It had to have been!" Gylfie agreed. "Who else would be going after the Pure Ones?"

"But how did they know that they were down there?" Digger wondered.

"They probably don't have all of the problems we're having." Soren said. "And that would give them more time to search, wouldn't it?"

"I guess so…" Digger sighed. "But we should probably sleep for now."

They all went off for their hollows and slept, but Coryn was awake.

_How is it they just know how to handle the Pure Ones? _He thought as he stood there with his eyes closed. He walked up to the fire and saw something coming up.

_Vision… _

**NOTE: ****The following below is rated M for intense violence. If you do not want to see a bloody interrogation/torture, I suggest you go to the end of the vision.**

"_Where is it I need to go?" A black and white owl asked what looked like a Pure One who was bleeding from a minor wound. The Pure One only laughed._

"_What do you mean by that? You don't need to go anywhere!"_

_At this the owl slammed his head back into the wall._

"_I'm not in the mood for your games, Pure One." He said with an angry voice. "Where do I need to go?"_

"_You think you can get things from me? Ha! Pathetic!" The Pure One screamed in paid as the owl plunged a sword deep into his wing._

"_We'll see about that…" The owl said as he impaled him in the side of the chest. The Pure One screamed in paid even louder than before. The owl smirked evilly. "Need any help with that?"_

_He put the tip of his talons _into _the cut, enlarging it. The screams grew louder and louder as he pushed his talons in even deeper into his insides. Eventually he stopped and looked at the Pure One with a deathly stare._

"_If you do not answer me soon, I will cut off you talons, one, by one. Then, I'll cut off your tongue, then your feet, then your beak, and then your eyes. Finally, I will tear off your very wings. So answer me before I have to do any of that!"_

_He laughed._

"_HA! I bet you don't have the w- AAAARRRRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHH!" His talon was just severed but the owl's sword._

"_Where is the prisoner?"_

"_I don't kn- AUUUGGGHH!" Another talon was severed._

"_Again; Where. Is. The. Prisoner?"_

"_No, PLEASE! ACCKKK!" He was barely able to breathe from the pain of another lost talon."_

"_It'll all be over as soon as you tell me what I need!"_

"_Alright- ALRIGHT! I know where! I-It's at Kiel Bay! In the Northern Kingdoms!" The Pure One yelled out, not wanting anymore pain. His attacker stopped, and flew to the end of the hollow._

"_Thank you…" He said as he pulled out a coal and dropped it on the ground. "Now you can burn in Hagsmire!"_

_End of Vision…_

* * *

><p><strong>A cliffhanger! Well, this chapter turned out longer than I expected but whatever… And a BIG thank you to for giving me an idea for a new title! YAY!<strong>

**Crazybird101- Oh nonono I signed up to it a while ago but I never knew how to use it! Don't worry!**

** - Thank you so much for the support and idea! But the name is CLOSE to Arcust, very, very close…**


	14. Chapter 14

**Forgot to make a note last chapter; when Kludd was hearing that noise outside Zarko's hollow, it was a piano considering the fact he's been a human. I don't remember if the Pure Ones were recruiting in The Barrens or Kuner, either. Also, *SPOILERS* the name of Nyra's mate will be revealed in this chapter, so this is it! And the pasts of both Zarko and (Soon to be shown) will be revealed next chapter as well. Another thing, correct me if I'm wrong, but port is left and starboard is right; it'll get confusing if I just use port and starboard instead of left and right, so I'll only refer to them as P&S if it's one of them talking/thinking. Lastly, Alcrus uses a Sword in his right foot and BC's in the left.**

* * *

><p>"Soren… Wake up, Soren!" Pelimore tried to awake her mate. Soren woke with a groan.<p>

"What's wrong?" He muttered tiredly.

"You were yelling in your sleep again! You said something about the Northern Kingdoms and a prisoner?" She cocked her head, wanting to know about it.

"Oh, just a daymare." Soren lied, but Peli didn't buy it.

"We both know that it was not a daymare, and that it was Starsight. So what did you see?"

Soren looked at the ground with his eyes closed as he tried to remember.

"It was that owl- the one who gave us the letter from Ambala, and saved the Ember." He started. "It was in the hollow that was burned in The Barrens, and he was interrogating a Pure One, asking about a prisoner or something. Afterwards the Pure One said that the prisoner was in Kiel Bay in the Northern Kingdoms, and then he dropped a coal down to burn everything. I don't know why, but the way he seemed was… both frightening and evil."

Peli nodded as she took this all in. "You should tell Coryn, and quickly."

"That's where I'm going now." He said as he took flight. By the time he arrived at his hollow Coryn was already awake. "Coryn, I had-"

"I know." His nephew cut him off with a nod. "And that's where we're going; Kiel Bay."

"Why are we going there?" Soren asked out of curiosity.

"Even though he seemed different, we can still give him help. But I'm mainly concerned about this 'prisoner.'" Coryn answered as he approached the entrance of the hollow. "How long until Digger, Gylfie and Twilight are ready?"

"I haven't told them; I'll need to tell them, and then they'd need to get ready." Soren informed him. Coryn nodded.

"I'll get Digger, you get Gylfie and Twilight. Once we do that, we'll tell them all at once so we don't waste time."

"Alright then." Soren said as he flew off in the direction of Gylfie's hollow. By the time he got there, she was already awake.

"Oh, hey Soren." She greeted him. "Is something wrong?"

"No time to explain; just get to Coryn's hollow." He said as he flew out. He looked and saw Gylfie flying out; she obviously figured that it was important.

About two minutes later, he got to Twilight's hollow and saw that he was fast asleep.

"Get up, Twi." Soren said, calling him by his nickname.

"What?" He muttered tiredly.

"Get to Coryn's hollow and we'll explain there; it's important."

"Is it really so important that you have to wake me up?"

"Yes, it is. And if it makes you feel better or get up faster, there may some fighting."

At this, Twilight was up in an instant.

Soren left immediately for Coryn's hollow as quick as he could. He entered the hollow, followed shortly by Twilight. They saw that Coryn, Digger and Gylfie were already there. Soren got up by Coryn's side and faced the other three.

"What's going on?" Digger asked, even though he already knew that they were about to answer. Coryn cleared his throat.

"As you all know, there's been a group of owls that killed an entire base of Pure Ones in Ambala, left us letter, gave me and Soren a vision using our Fire and Starsight, prevented the Pure Ones from getting the Ember of Hoole, and that Tengshu reported to have seen fighting the Slink Melf team in the Middle Kingdoms." They all nodded. Soren continued for him.

"Yesterday there was the report of a small oasis being burned down in The Barrens. As it turns out, it was inhabited by the Pure Ones. Like it happened in Ambala, we both had the same vision with our sights, and learned that the leader of the group that the two of us saw in Ambala was interrogating a Pure One, asking about a prisoner. He'd cut off his talons just to get what he needed, and eventually he told him that he needed to go the Kiel Bay in the Northern Kingdoms. After that, he just left a coal on the ground the let it burn, which explains the fire. So we are going to head there to help him. Even though we don't know much about him, we can still offer assistance. Get your battle claws ready; we'll leave as soon as we're all set to go."

* * *

><p>Nyra flew through the sands of The Barrens as she quickly searched for her mate's hollow. She was slightly panicking, but just tried to only think that it was vital that she got to him as quickly as she could. When she found the burrow, she scrambled in and found her mate turning back to her, his face still not visible.<p>

"What is the matter, my dear Hagsfiend?" He asked, referring to her as what she really was.

"It's… It's Zarko… They took down the outpost here and found out about the prisoner is… And he's headed to Kiel Bay to right now…" She explained, breathing hard from the flight.

He was silent for a moment, until under the shadows of the dark he smirked evilly, followed but a sinister chuckle.

"This may be a threat to us… but it has benefits."

"What? What benefits?"

He chuckled darkly again.

"His anger, my dear! He's left himself vulnerable, and now the darkness within him will take over!" He explained as if it made sense, and it did to him. "I'll take care of it, but I have a much… _different _course for you to take."

"Tell me, and I'll do it all for you." Nyra smirked, and he smirked even wider than he had before.

"Go meet Orlando, the 'Striga,' as he calls himself. He was the one who attacked you after the first, named Tengshu. Orlando has some… _history_ with the so-called 'Guardians.' Make an alliance with him; gain his assistance in the upcoming war." He said, and he walked past Nyra to the exit of burrow. "Now if you don't mind, I have somewhere to go…"

"Where are you going?" She asked as she turned back to him. He stopped for a few seconds, and then his head slightly back, enough to where a glint in his right blood-shotted eye.

"To meet someone I haven't seen in a long time."

* * *

><p>"This can't be, this just can't be…!" Alterran repeated to himself as he paced back and forth. "This is great and unbelievable news, but Zarko will go on a rampage just to get there!"<p>

"Why can't you just tell us what happened and what's going on?" Kludd suggested as he watched him. Alterran just stopped and turned to him.

"Zarko was the only eye witness of what happened, so we can't explain it. All we can say is that it is very personal to Zarko, and he may not want you to know."

"What about that anger you mentioned?" Thora asked, wondering what exactly he was talking about. He now turned his attention to her.

"Zarko has a dark side of himself; if something happens that angers or stresses him very much, it could make him go insanely crazy- as in deadly and unstable. And on top of that, his eyes turn from that fiery orange, to a blood red." He explained, making them all get mental images of him like that.

"How did this happen?" Uglamore asked, now interested since he now knew that Zarko could be that powerful.

"He's had it for a long time." Alcrus said as he entered. "An accident of when he was created at the beginning of time and it just happened eventually. When we were working as humans though, he absorbed a deadly type of chemical called Radiation. Humans made something called a bomb, and the mother of them all makes and explosion big enough to probably destroy half of the Southern Kingdoms! After it blows, it leaves Radiation all throughout the air, making anyone in its vicinity exposed and dead in ten. It is created by other things to. Anyways, he lived after consuming it by trapping himself in a room so we didn't get exposed. He was alright, but sometimes when he gets this problem, he turns into… Something else… Something indescribably horrible…"

They were all silent as the two brothers stared at each other, obviously in fear of what he could do as whatever he'd turn into. Just then, Reiden entered, out of breath.

"I've got good news… and bad news." He puffed out. "Good news is… I found out where he's going… Kiel Bay."

They all nodded and prepared to take off.

"WAIT!"

They all turned around to look at Reiden again, who was still breathing harshly.

"The bad news is… I got this information from… The Guardians… Coryn and Soren's Star and Fire sights have… shown them what happened after you left him alone… so Coryn and the Band are about to… head out…"

Alterran wingpalmed.

"Oh, Great Glaux! If they catch up to him, they're done for! What are they doing, just going out there without even knowing what they're up against? They'll be a clear target to the Pure Ones, and Zarko if he hasn't calmed down by the time they reach him!"

"How would the Pure Ones know about them?" Clay asked.

"They wouldn't, but where we're headed are probably many Pure Ones who will either box them in with an ambush, or kill them on sight." Alterran answered.

"In other words…" Alcrus said, grabbing their attention. "Get your weapons and armor together, because we're in a race to Kiel Bay."

_A few hours later..._

"We need to hurry!" Alcrus yelled back as they flew past the corpses of the dead Pure Ones on the Western Island of Kiel Bay.

"Believe me, we're hurryin'!" Alterran replied, staying back with Clay, Kludd, Thora and Uglamore while Reiden was way in the back.

"You weren't kidding when you said he goes insanely deadly!" Kludd said as he saw that most of the bodies had either dissembled body parts, or deep and wide wounds.

"Did you think we were kidding?" Reiden yelled up to them.

"No!" The Barns, Snowy and Spotted yelled back to him.

"I just thought you were over exaggerating!" Uglamore said defensively. "I didn't realize that it was _this _bad!"

"Stop yappin'!" Alcrus shouted. "Because it looks like we got some leftovers to get!"

They flew up by his side and saw that there were a few dead bodies, but also about thirty Pure Ones that probably came to get Zarko but missed.

"Let's get this done." Alterran said to himself as he dived right and took down two of them with his battle claws, and then twirled around as he slashed through another's face. Alcrus flew in past Alterran to get an incoming Pure One by cutting his sword through her left wing, head-butting her, and then using his battle claws to throw her into two more Pure Ones.

Kludd and Uglamore took the left side and had entered with Uglamore going in first, picking one up as Kludd killed the one to his right. Uglamore threw the Pure One up and to the side before taking another two down by grabbing a hold of their throats and squeezing them enough to make them chock and making cuts from the battle claws. Kludd flew upwards to get an airborne Pure One whom was about to dive for Uglamore and got they locked talons. Kludd got an idea and wrapped his wings around the Pure One's, and began to fight with his talons. As they got close to the ground, he'd put them in a position to where he'd landed on top of the Pure One and crushed another in the process.

Clay, Thora and Reiden got the middle and they took two down each at the same time. Reiden quick-jumped three more approaching them by connecting his battle claws in the right and middle ones' eyes and slamming them into the last, finishing him off with his battle claws in his gizzard. Clay had flown to the left to avoid getting by another soldier, grabbed his foot and twisted it, making him fall on the ground and his mask flew off. Clay then finally finished him off by a punch in the face, using the battle claws like brass knuckles. Thora took two on by flying straight towards them, but then dashed to the right and got one with her battle claws in his face, then killed the next by kicking him in the gut and pushing the back of his head to the ground with her battle claws entering his skin. She had to step to the side to avoid his body hitting her.

By the time they were done, they had heard more fighting, but it sounded close and intense.

"Zarko!" Alterran yelled as he flew in the direction they had been going all along.

They flew on until the stopped as they head metal parrying just around the corner. They looked at each other and nodded before charging around the corner.

What they saw, was Zarko's back turned to them, fighting with his swords and metal wings colliding with something that was shocking; an owl that was a Great Gray and a half tall, had pitch black feathers with a violet hue, and black swords that were seeable through with black steam emitting from them into the air and slowly turning purple, eventually disappearing. What mostly caught their attention, like Zarko, were his blood-shot red eyes, and they were slightly glowing.

Zarko parried blade-to-blade continuously until his left sword flew out to the side, making him watch it, then his right flew out of his talons, the owl almost twice his size swung in for a decapitation but Zarko ducked and tackled him down. They both fell over but Zarko was kicked to the side as he stood up and jump at Zarko with his swords about to strike through him but he rolled to the side, causing his attacker's glowing swords to stab through the ground.

He stumbled up, clenching an earlier wound in his left side with his wing. His brothers ran up to his side and got ready to attack. The dark owl chuckled darkly.

"I've forgotten how strong you are, Zarko; it has been to long since I've seen you." He said as he smirked evilly. Zarko only grunted in response.

"WHERE IS THE PRISONER!" He roared. The owl only laughed.

"Still holding on to that, eh?"

"Hmph, which was supposed to be one of the best days of my life, but _you,_ turned it upside down." Zarko replied, breathing.

"It was simple and enjoyable for me. Hagsmire has gifted me with such power I can deem."

"Hagsmire has corrupted you! We fought well together until you turned to your backs to us!"

"We fought together, yes… but I was weak back then- a pathetic fool, blinded by such stupidity!"

"Then let's prove it! Fight me now!" Zarko challenged, but he only frowned.

"I'd love to, but I have my other duties to attend to, and your beloved friend will die a painful death!" He said as he flew up and disappeared into a black and purple mist. Zarko charged forward.

"ARCTUS!" He screamed, but the mist that the owl named Arctus had disappeared in was gone.

Zarko stood there, motionless. Alterran walked up by his side and patted him on the shoulder.

"We'll go look; you just stay here until you're ready." He whispered into his brother's ear as he, Alcrus and Reiden took off.

Zarko looked back at the last four, revealing his dull, orange eyes.

"Zarko?" Kludd said, clueless about what was going on. In response, Zarko only turned his head back and faced the ground with his eyes shut tightly. Kludd stood next to his right, Thora on his left, and Clay and Uglamore behind them. "Who was that?"

"Allow me to reintroduce myself…"

Zarko knelt down with his right wing holding him up.

They prepared for him to say something either strange or irrational... but what he said next, was indeed the most shocking thing they'd ever heard.

"My name is Zarko, and I have not three, but _four _brothers…"

* * *

><p><strong>Buuum… Buuuuummm… BUUUUUUMMMMM! Didn't see THAT comin' now, did ya?<strong>


	15. Chapter 15

**Just to clear something up… Arctus is not a Great Gray; I meant the **_**size **_**of a Great Gray and a half. What he is, is a… Actually it'll be shown down below. Don't worry if you got it mixed up, because I can be a little misunderstanding sometimes due to my Aspergers. Thank Glaux/God that I'm not saying this because my new braces hurt like a-!**

…**Ahem, anyways, it's time for some explanations… UNE CHAPTA VIVFTEEN! (I lived in Germany for seven and a half years so I act like I'm German sometimes)**

* * *

><p>"…"<p>

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…What?" Kludd broke the silence.

"You heard me; Nyra's mate, the one who Shattered you, is my brother."

"Wh-Why didn't you tell us?" Thora asked. Zarko opened his dulled eyes as he stared at the ground.

"Shame to call him brother. He wasn't always like that; before he was just a normal black Barn Owl, and he wasn't that big. And besides; if you' just met me for the first time, barely knew me and I just mentioned, 'Oh yeah, by the way, I have an evil brother who's Nyra's mate and used Kludd as a puppet!' Would you trust me?" He said, still not getting up. They were all silent. "Exactly."

"So why did he Shatter me, then?" Kludd asked bending over to get a better look at his face.

"It wasn't the luck of the draw… Long, long ago, when we were still very young, we'd read that soon three Barn Owls, two brothers and one sister, would be born and bring peace to all of the owl kingdoms. We'd played our part by set their parents named Marella and Noctus together and let them go from there. The two brothers had become the Kings of Ga'Hoole, and freed all owls of St. Aggies. And thus forth, the owl world was peaceful… that is, until Arctus turned. He knew that if he tried to take control the brothers would stop him, but he knew that the only way to prevent this was to turn them against each other, and so he did. The younger had become a Guardian of Ga'Hoole under the teachings of the heroic Lyze of Kiel, while the older became the leader of the infamous Pure Ones. The younger brother had watched his older brother die by the talons of his Great Gray friend. Eventually, the Pure Ones returned under the control of Nyra, and the second Embered Monarch had come to rule the Great Tree. The War had ended with Nyra and the traitor, Orland dead… but Coryn had died from the Striga tearing his wing off, and the younger brother became the King of Ga'Hoole as a non-embered monarch. They thought that all peace was there, until an army lead by Arctus came out of nowhere, catching them off guard, weakened without the rule of Coryn. They all died; every last soul living in the owl world was no longer of existence. All that remained of peace were the four brothers of Arctus, and Glaux had sent them back to prevent this from happening." Zarko turned his head enough to see Kludd's face. "And those two brothers, Kludd, were you and Soren."

"You mean… I was meant for peace?" Kludd said, shocked.

"Exactly, and I knew that there was still goodness in you, so you were given another chance to prove yourself."

"So- Just why did Arctus betray you?" Uglamore stepped up to Kludd's side, as did Clay to Thora.

"I don't know… But I wish I knew so I could make it right…" Zarko said as he stood up.

"So, who are we after anyways?" Clay asked as Zarko took a few steps forward. He stopped and sighed sadly.

"It was after Lynx, and Arctus had already betrayed us though he wasn't much of a threat then. I… The four of us were about to go on a mission, but Glaux said that he was giving us help and sent someone named… Valcia. I saw her as just anybody at first, even though she was the same as us; strength, non-aging, everything. Eventually, we were more than friends, and I saw her as more than just anybody. One day, I was going to ask her to my mate. Everything was perfect; we ate together, we laughed, the sunset, everything was perfect… but Arctus had gained power and learned how to control me. I asked her, and I could see the surprise in her eyes."

"What did she say?" Clay asked.

"I never got an answer; before she could say anything, Arctus took all control of me. I could feel everything, but I couldn't control them. He grabbed my swords, kicked her on the ground, then jumped on top of her, and… I must've stabbed her fifty frinkin' times, I just couldn't believe it… I- I ripped her heart out right before her eyes… then all was black." He sighed sadly and shakily. "When I woke, I found myself surrounded by nothing but flat grassy plains as far as the eye could see, standing above a grave marked by a cross made out of bones, with a skull on top. It was raining… raining blood- the blood of all the lives he and I took combined. When I looked up, I swear that I saw his face in the clouds, and hear him laughing… Today, I just wonder if it was my fault for letting him control me, and more importantly; if she knew that it was him…"

He was shaking like he'd just lost every last drop of blood in his body, and the four were shocked once again.

"I… I'm sorry…" Thora whispered, bowing her head. "We had no idea…"

"It is not your fault." Zarko said, turning around to face them after he was no longer shaking. "But either way… She _is _the prisoner- alive. How, I don't know, but I'm going to find out. The only thing I'm outraged about is the fact that they have her."

"Zarko!" A familiar voice called. They turned to see Alterran, Alcrus and Reiden headed for them.

"She's not here. The probably got her on the Southern Island." Alterran reported. Zarko nodded and turned his head his friends.

"Let's go."

* * *

><p>"I see a cave; two guarding inside, and at least ten on the inside." Zarko whispered from their hidden perch. "Clay and Uglamore will take down the guards. On the inside, Kludd and Thora will handle the right side. Alcrus and Reiden will get the left. Alterran and I will take the middle. We'll all charge at the same time; no delays, no early hits- just all fly in, Clay and Uglamore get them on the way in and we just take them down. Got it?"<p>

They all nodded. Kludd noticed that lately he'd been giving both he and Thora the same objectives late, probably because of the unhandled feelings.

_Oh, yeah; I should probably get back to Zarko on that. _He thought.

"Okay, then." Zarko whispered. "Get ready… Three… Two… One…"

Clay and Uglamore took off, followed by the rest. The two guards saw them and were about to yell, but were not in time due to Clay's battle claws sunk into the left guard's chest, and Uglamore's into the head of the other as Everyone else flew in.

Alterran flew in and sunk his battle claws into the first owl he saw, followed by Zarko's swords beheading two more behind that. He then used his metal wings to tear of the wings of one of the two behind that, while Alterran slammed the other into the rock wall and impaled him.

After the rest were taken care of, Zarko looked around and frowned. (Cut the battle short because I'm tiered and lazy at the moment)

"Hm… Not here." Zarko stated simply, looking around. "Let's keep moving- see if we can find them keeping her somewhere else."

They flew out of the cave and were flying for another few minutes, until Kludd caught up with Zarko.

"Hey, um… Zarko? I know this is a bad time and all, but can I ask you a few questions as we go?" He asked. Zarko gave him a questioning look but sighed.

"Keep going; we'll be right behind you." He said to the group, flying slower to get out of their hearing range with Kludd. "What is it?"

"What if this is all a setup?" Kludd asked. "I mean… You said you killed her yourself, and even ripped her heart out, literally, right?"

"Yes."

"Well, how could she be alive? What if they just said that to get us here in a trap?"

Zarko looked down with a look of disbelief, but shook his head.

"No- if Arctus knew our every move, we'd be dead; I've know him well enough to figure that if he ever had the chance to ambush us he would have done it by now. And he may have reasons for keeping her alive." Zarko answered.

"Okay, but… What did you mean you _let _him take control of you?" Kludd asked, and Zarko shuddered a bit.

"I had the power to break out of his control back then, yet I didn't. I don't know why, but I just let her die by my talons." He sighed. "I just don't know why…"

"Hey! We got another cave up here!" Reiden called back. Kludd and Zarko immediately flew up next to them on the perch behind a rock and saw another cave, but there were five guards outside.

"Five guards… seems like this is it." Alterran muttered. "Kludd and Uglamore, see if you can hear what's going on inside there."

The Barn Owls nodded and leaned forward as far as they could.

"Why are we keeping you here anyways?" A voice came.

"Well, sir, it is under Nyra's orders." Another voice came.

"But she doesn't even tell us why! We have to keep this pathetic worm here with us for no reason!" The first voice snapped back.

"You know, I'm not death." A female voice came.

"Put a mouse in it!"

"You're lucky I can't move right now… Otherwise I'd be kicking your tail feathers and shoving coals down your beak right now." The female threatened. Kludd and Uglamore pulled back.

"She's in there." Uglamore nodded. "And might I add that she seems quite calm and threatening."

Zarko smirked as he looked back down at the cave entrance.

"That's her alright."

* * *

><p>"What's with the Pure Ones guarding that cave?" Twilight asked to himself as they watched the five Pure Ones standing on guard.<p>

"That must be the prisoner they were talking about." Coryn answered anyways. "And it seems that he is wanted by the Pure Ones

"You mean _she_." Soren corrected.

"What?" They all asked, turning to him.

"I heard them talking; it's a she, and she sounds like she wants to kill these Pure Ones themselves." Soren explained.

"Well, we gonna fight or what?" Twilight asked eagerly.

"We need a plan first." Gylfie stopped him. "Or else we'll probably get killed."

"But I have a suggestion." Digger said, making their attention now turn to him. "What if we save her and give her to the other owls and they might tell us what is going on."

"Good idea, Digger." Coryn nodded. "We'll take out the guards and head in."

They turned to fly in to attack.

"We'll go on three." Coryn ordered. "O-"

"THREE!"

Everyone flew out to attack, not realizing that the voice didn't belong to Coryn. Everyone stopped short and now there were five Pure Ones guarding a cave, the King of Ga'Hoole and four other owls on the left of the cave entrance, and eight other owls in masks on the right. Each of the groups began glancing back at each other.

"Ah, _frink_."

Coryn blinked and realized that the owner of that voice was indeed the owl they'd been searching for.

"This is… Awkward."

Soren turned his attention to the owner of that voice and saw a Barn Owl that looked all too familiar. He was about to say something until a dozen shadows cast over them. They looked up and their eyes widened in horror.

"Oh, Great Glaux…" Alterran muttered.

"KRAAL RAID!" Alcrus yelled. Before they knew it, dozens of colored owls came clashing down upon them, and everything went black.


	16. Chapter 16

_**Sooo**_** sorry for the longer-than-usual wait! The Krakish language I decided to mix the actual Krakish with German so I can actually use enough to make a conversation. I got this idea because in the books "Ja" is "Yes" in Krakish. It is also yes in German, so I figured, "Eh, why not?"**

* * *

><p>Kludd slowly began to awake.<p>

_Ugh, Glaux, my head hurts… What happened?_

He opened his eyes and was met by the sight of Clay and Zarko tied up with their wings extended up to large sticks plodded into the snow and ice in a cave. He then remembered the events of the Kraals that came out of nowhere and attacked them.

"You're finally awake…" Zarko whispered silently. "Good…"

"Zarko…" Kludd whispered back. "What happened?"

"The Kraals outnumbered us… You got knocked out and I had no choice but to surrender… Otherwise we would've died…" He explained.

"What about the Pure Ones?"

"Dead… They killed them and took us as prisoners." He explained. "Everyone's alive…"

Just then, three Kraals landed in front of them and eyed them carefully.

"For now, at least…" Zarko finished. Kludd looked and saw that the leader was a Spotted Owl with red feathers. One of the guards was a Snowy Owl with turquoise feathers. The last one was a Pygmy Owl with hot pink feathers.

"_Sie sind ganz im fighter, weißt du das? _(You are quite the fighter, you know that?)_"_ The leader said in Krakish.

"_Ja… Takk._ (Yes… Thank you.)_"_ Zarko nodded. _"Aber ich weiß, dass man nicht capture ergänzen wir unsere stärke. _(But I know that you didn't capture us to complement our strength.)_"_

The Kraal churred. "_Recht du hast! Und sie wahrscheinlich wissen was wollen wir_**...** (Right you are! And you probably know what we want…)"

"_Was? Du bist immer noch nach diesen?_ (What? You're still after those?)" Zarko asked jokingly.

"_Ja, also bisshen. _(Yes, so speak)" He answered with a serious tone. Zarko only churred.

"_Im Issen Bodenbewohnende; wo sonst? _(In the Ice Talons; where else?)" Zarko lied with a straight face. He didn't buy it.

"_Denkst du, wer ich bin? Ein kukla trufynkken? _(Who do you think I am? Some crazy drunk?)" The Kraal asked sarcastically.

"_Nachsun!Ich dachte sie waren einige byggenbrocken, glossen hordo's mammish! _(No! I thought you were some big, glossy snake's mother!)" Zarko insulted. The Snowy stepped forward but was stopped by the Spotted, while the Pygmy just looked surprised.

"_Sehr lustig ... Aber ich habe sie für die stash der Golden Farbstoffe und Issen Vintygg unguis. _(Very funny… But I came here for the stash of Golden Dyes and Deep Ice claws.)" The Kraal replied calmly, a hint of anger and impatiens in his voice. _"Also wo sind die? Sag mal! _(So where are they? Tell me!)"

"_Nachsun, nuffan, nynik. _(No, no way, never.)" Zarko said, turning his head. _"Du nennst dich Kraal? Mehr wie ein kerplonken idioten! _(You call yourself a Kraal? More like a useless idiot!)"

The Spotted Owl was growing angrier every second as he used his bare talons to plunge into his chest. Zarko only grunted slightly in response.

"_Sie _werden_ mir sagen, sonst werde ich mit meinen Federn färben ihr bleshka! _(You _will _tell me, or else I'll dye my feathers with your blood!)" The Kraal threatened. Zarko only smirked.

"_Dann machen Sie es. _(Then do it.)" Zarko said calmly as if he'd just said something that wouldn't even affect him.

The Kraal was surprised and hesitant at first, but approached him. Kludd didn't want to watch; he closed his eyes and heard yelps of pain.

"_Du gibst nicht auf leicht jetzt, und du_**?** (You don't give up easily now, do you?)" He heard the Kraal ask. Zarko grunted.

"_Froh, dass du bemerkt haben, wenn man bedenkt, wie schwach sie sind. _(Glad you noticed, considering how weak you are.)" Zarko spat, followed by another yelp of pain.

"_Ich bin nicht herum spielen. Wo. Ist. Das. STASH! _(I'm not playing around. Where. Is. The. STASH!)"

"_Wasmacht sie glauben, dass sie sie gut?_ (What makes you think it will do you any good?)"

The Kraal eventually stopped and Kludd opened his eyes. The Kraal approached Kludd and put his claws against his neck.

_"Da sie nicht reden, ich denke, ich werde einfach töten ihr Freund anstatt... _(Since you won't talk, I guess I'll just kill your friend instead...)"

_"WARTEN! _(WAIT!)" Zarko yelled, causing the Kraal to turn to him. "_Weil Sie ... Sie sind auf den am weitesten entfernten Punkt west auf Stormfast Insel ... An der Küste entlang gibt es eine hollow rock... _(They're... They're on the furthest point west on Stormfast Island... Along the shore there's a hollow rock...)"

The Kraal smirked and walked to the exit and said something to the guards. He flew off with the Snowy, leaving the Pygmy with them.

"_Warum muss ich immer sein, den Job abzuschließen? _(Why do I always have to be the one to finish the job?)" The Pygmy asked himself as he looked at the ground.

"_Sie müssen nicht, Flynn. _(You don't have to, Flynn.)" Zarko answered, making the Pygmy named Flynn give him a surprised look.

"_Wie wussten sie schon ... ? _(How did you know…?)" Flynn trailed off. Zarko slightly smiled.

"Firtha's doing fine at the Great Tree… Just fine… Shame that Gylfie is here again after what happened those years ago…" Zarko said in Hoolian, raising his head up to him. "You're just a soldier following orders, and I respect that… But the world is endangered, and it is up to you right now to decide what happens…"

"What?" Flynn asked, confused, as were Clay and Kludd.

"It's hard to explain, but the world is at risk by someone I know very well, and he'll kill us all. We're the only chance of stopping this, and you have two choices now; either kill us, and in time everyone else living here on Earth and beyond will die… Or you can risk your life by setting us free, and then you'll have a chance to live, see Firtha again… But it's all up to you, not me…" Zarko explained, looking down and closing his eyes. A few seconds past as a hesitant Flynn stood there, but soon enough he cut the ropes off of Zarko's wings and legs, and he fell slightly.

"_Takk… _(Thank you…)"

"_Gare heeldvig. _(Think nothing of it.)" Flynn nodded, and then cut the other two down.

"I need to ask you a few questions first…" Zarko said, standing up. "Where's our equipment?"

"We're in a large crack in the ground on the northeast side of the kingdom. The whole place is pretty much an ice canyon with a roof, having caves on each side. After you leave this cave, there should be another one down further to your port side. There will be about two guards guarding it, so be careful."

"Good… and where are the rest of us? Did any of us other than the Pure One's die?"

"No; the Bay and White-Faced Owls are starboard from here, the other Barn, Crested and Snowy are further port than the equipment, and the last five are also further port than the other three, with their equipment in a cave on the opposite side of theirs."

"What about the last one?"

"'Last one?' What last…? Oh, you mean that female that was tied up with the Pure Ones? They had her put away in a cave at the end of the crack on the starboard side of here." Flynn told him. Zarko nodded.

"Alright then… Clay, Kludd; you think you can get to our weapons without being seen?" Zarko asked.

"Eh… We can try…" Clay said. He nodded again.

"Alright. I'll go with you to grab my weapons and armor, and then I'll head for Alterran and Reiden. You two will go get Alcrus, Thora and Uglamore, get them their equipment and head out- we'll meet up back at the island; I'll take care of the Band" He turned to Flynn. "And what of you?"

"Well… I think I need to get out of here; if I come up with a story and say that you got your ropes untied and knocked me out he'll probably get angry and kill me, so I'll try to get out of here." Flynn explained. "I have my absolute trust and faith in you for letting me live with my daughter, so I hope you're not lying."

"I'm not lying." Zarko walked out to the entrance. "Glaux speed, Flynn… and I hope you get see Firtha again."

* * *

><p>"What was that stash he talking about?" Clay whispered as they flew silently in the dark, knowing a bit of Krakish due to him growing up in the Northern Kingdoms.<p>

"Let's just say I have a _history _with the Kraals, and they think I have some Golden Dyes and very valuable, rare and strong battle claws." Zarko answered as they got out of site from a passing Kraal. "I lied about where they are, and I got us a chance to get out of here."

"And who's Flynn?" Kludd asked as they continued flying after the Kraal was gone. Zarko smiled.

"A good owl; he dyes his feathers hot pink because it's his daughter's favorite color. Before the Great Burning, Gylfie was captured by the Kraals. Flynn was the only one who was nice to her, and got to know her better. He learned that she was a Guardian of Ga'Hoole and was intrigued. When Gylfie was rescued, he had the chance to stop them, yet he didn't. As they flew away, the Kraal was all yelling in anger after them, but Flynn cheered them on. After that day, he knew that the best place for his young was indeed the Great Tree of Ga'Hoole. And later on, his daughter Firtha was sent there by him. At the current time, Firtha is Otulissa's assistant in the Ga'Hoology Chaw." Zarko explained, and they nodded in understanding.

"No wonder you talked him into doing that." Clay murmured. Zarko nodded.

"He may be a Kraal, but Kraals aren't evil; they're simply doing what they please, and I respect that." Zarko said. "Try to avoid killing them- knock them out if you can; I don't won't the Kraals to be a bigger problem later on than they are at the moment."

Clay and Kludd both nodded once again. About a minute passed until they came across a cave with two Kraals standing outside of the cave entrance.

"There it is." Kludd whispered. Zarko flew in and landed on top of the one on the right side, and then hit him on the hit him on the head. Clay and Kludd tackled the one on the left and hit him into the wall hard enough to knock him out.

"Now that that's taken care of…" Zarko muttered, pulling the Kraal into the cave. Clay and Kludd did the same. When they got inside, they hid the Kraals behind a barrel. Zarko looked around and smirked. He walked up to a sack and looked inside of it. "Perfect…"

"What is it?" Clay got behind him, curious of what he found. In response, Zarko turned around to him and tossed the sack to his feet, and many dyes fell out.

"Pick a color."

Clay and Kludd both looked down at the sack of dyes in surprise and confusion but reached in a grabbed one. Clay's feathers were painted purple and Kludd's were now orange.

"You look don't look that bad in orange, Kludd." Claymore complemented.

"Thanks… and purple suits you well, too." Kludd replied.

"It looks good on both of you."

They turned to see Zarko approaching them and their beaks were left agape; all of his feathers were now painted black and white, as if it were a skeleton. His equipment and mask were also painted to meet the design. It even left them a little scared.

"H-How did you…?" Clay and Kludd both trailed off. Zarko chuckled.

"I have my ways." He answered, turning around and heading towards the exit. "Now get your gear and get moving."

"What about you?" Kludd asked.

"What about me?"

"What are you going to do?" Clay simplified. Zarko turned back to them with another smirk under his mask.

"To buy you some time."

And with that, he flew out of the cave and headed back the way they came. They glanced at each other and shrugged, then flew out of the cave in the other direction. As they flew some nearby Kraals would look at them strangely, but then forget about them and continue what they're doing.

"They must not recognize us." Clay whispered.

"At least the dyes are keeping them from killing us." Kludd whispered back. Clay nodded.

"I've been wondering… Why did Zarko think it was his fault for killing Valcia?"

"I don't know…" Kludd looked down, thinking. "Maybe it's just shame or rage of something that caused it to be done?"

"I wouldn't think so; otherwise why would he blame himself?"

"Well, could it have been something he regrets doing to Arctus?"

"It could've been…" Clay trailed off. Before he could continue, all of the Kraals began taking off in the opposite direction they were going. "I guess Zarko's attracting their attention for us."

"Then we'd better get moving." Kludd replied.

They nodded to each other and took off. (Seems I like nodding for some reason, feels weird to me…) After a few minutes of flying, the cave came into view. They landed in front of the two guards and walked up towards them.

"What are you doing back here?" One of them asked.

"What's going on?" Clay asked back. The Kraal shrugged.

"One of the prisoners got loose, and now he's getting a lot of attention. Since Captain's gone at the moment, everyone's going down there to kill or capture him again. That answer your question?" The other one said. Clay looked over at him for a moment before turning back to the first one.

"Well why aren't you going there?" Clay asked once again.

"Because if these ones get loose than whose gonna watch them?" The first guard answered. "My question is why aren't _you _going over there?"

"…Do you want to get over there and see some fighting?"

"Well, yes."

"Then stop wasting time and get over there while we guard them!" Kludd suggested. The Kraals glanced at each other hesitantly at first but then flew off. "Nice job."

"Thanks."

They entered the cave and saw Alcrus, Thora and Uglamore in the same position they were just a few minutes ago.

"Clay? Kludd?" Uglamore said, looking up. "Is that you?"

"It is." Clay said, cutting him down with his battle claws.

"And Zarko said to get you out of here." Kludd cut Thora loose and she fell, but he caught her. Thora looked up at him and they're eyes met once again. They were caught in the stare like they had the first time at the Great Tree.

"Where's everyone else?" Alcrus asked, causing the two to break the contact and look over to see Clay cutting him down, and they were looking right at them. Kludd nervously put her to her feet and turn completely to them.

"W-Well, a Kra-Kraal named Fl-Flynn let us l-loose after Zarko tal-alked to him…" Kludd stuttered, both embarrassed and nervous. "He said that our stuff was in-in a cave and you were over here wh-while everyone else was on the other s-side… Al-Alterran and Reiden were in a cave, Coryn and the rest of the Band were further down here, and Valcia is at the end of here."

Alcrus couldn't help but churr at Kludd's state while Thora was clueless about why he was so embarrassed and Clay just smirked under his mask. "Well, of course Zarko went after Valcia. Let's go help them!"

"Actually…" Clay cut him off. "He said to get you to your equipment and get you out of here."

All except for Kludd looked at him and blinked. Alcrus sighed.

"If that's what he wants, then let's get out of here."

* * *

><p>"Get him!"<p>

"He's moving too fast!"

"Who is this owl?"

"The Captain will kill us if we don't catch him!"

"Who let him out?"

The yells continued to come from the Kraals in pursuit of Zarko. Every once in awhile he'd even stop to punch two or three in the face with his hard battle claws and most likely knock them out, and then move on. He was actually enjoying himself a little; the Kraals couldn't catch him, and he was able to stop and go yet they were still too slow!

_I've drawn them away from Clay, Kludd, and everyone else… But now I just need to get them away from me._

He looked back and saw that he had at least twenty Kraals following them. He looked back in front of him and saw five more charging straight towards him. He got an idea and slowed down a bit, getting closer to his pursuers. He got back far enough to where they could almost reach out and touch him. The charging Kraals got about five feet away from him when he dropped down and caused the two groups to collide and fall about twenty to thirty feet and hit the ground. Before they could get back up, Zarko flew on and went out of sight.

Zarko continued flying and found Alterran and Reiden's cave, guarded by two Kraals. He flew straight down towards them and before they could react, Zarko's battle claws hit him in the chest and slammed him into the cave wall, knocking him out. The other was about to yell but Zarko tackled him to the ground and held his talons around his neck and pressed in a little. He struggled to breathe but his grip was strong and the battle claws were making a little blood trickle down his neck. Eventually he stopped struggling and closed his eyes. Zarko let go of him and felt his neck for any sign of a pulse, and he was thankful of the slow double beats. He walked inside the cave and found his brothers in the same state that he was, both looking at him.

"I figured you'd find a way out of here." Alterran said bluntly.

"I always find a way." He replied, pulling out one of his swords and cutting off the ropes around his wings and feet.

"Not always." Alterran said back as he pulled the rest of the ropes off of himself while Zarko cut down Reiden.

"You know what I mean." Zarko helped Reiden up and walked over in between them.

"So, what do we do now?" Reiden asked. Zarko turned to him and got to where he could see both of them without constantly turning his head.

"I was held up with Clay and Kludd and luckily Flynn was left to kill us. I talked him out of it and he told us what we needed. Now, I need you two to head port and you should come across a cave with our equipment in it. After you do that, go and head to the end of the Crack and get the band out of there. Tell them that they just need to trust us and escort them out of here, and meet up back at the island. Everyone else is already out of here and I need you to not kill the Kraals unless provoked." He explained, walking to the exit. "Good luck."

"What are you going to do?" Reiden asked.

"Valcia is at the end of the Crack, and I'm going to get her."

His brothers both nodded in understanding. Zarko nodded back and flew out of the cave. Alterran churred.

"Of course he's going for Val; why wouldn't he?"

"Well, at least he's going to have another chance… I hope." Reiden said as he walked towards the exit.

"Don't jinx it now!" Alterran replied as he flew out, followed by his brother.

* * *

><p>"Soren… Wake up, Soren!"<p>

Soren awoke with a groan as he heard his name being called by a familiar female voice.

"Wha… What happened?" He mumbled as he opened his eyes. He was met by the sight of him, Coryn, Digger, Gylfie and Twilight all having their wings tied to wooden poles stuck in the ground, and their talons were tied up as well. Gylfie sighed.

"Finally! You're awake!" She said in relief. Soren blinked and realized that they were in a cave. "The Kraals got us and brought us here… In my case, again."

"I forgot about you being here before." Soren churred.

"Well, I had someone who was able to save me, but not this time." Gylfie sighed again.

"Don't be so down." Digger said. Gylfie smiled weakly.

"You were here before?" Coryn asked in surprise.

"Oh, we never told you that Gylfie's been here before, have we?" Soren asked. His nephew shook his head. "Well, before the Great Burning, we were sent on a mission for several different reasons. We had an experience with the Kraals and they captured Gylfie. We had no choice but to return without her, but later on she came during the battle with reinforcements."

"I got loose because someone I knew when I was with Otulissa at the Glauxian Brother's Retreat figured out what happened to me and got me out of here." Gylfie finished. Coryn nodded.

"I'm still wondering…" Digger said, grabbing their attention. "Why did those owls right before the Kraals showed up look so familiar?"

"Yeah," Gylfie nodded. "That Snowy really looked like the Rouge Smith of Silverveil…"

"And that Barn Owl looked like Uglamore for some reason, and he even had the teeth marks from that wolf…" Coryn muttered.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but that other Barn Owl looked exactly like Kludd!" Soren exclaimed, causing everyone to look at him in confusion.

"What?" Coryn asked.

"But he's dead!" Twilight told him. "I even killed him myself!"

"And I saw his bones being burned!" Coryn agreed.

"But… He's my brother, and I can recognize him when I see him! And I even noticed a scar on his back, right where you got him, Twilight!" Soren protested. "And everyone else we recognized is dead as well! Isn't that enough proof?"

"I just don't want to think about him coming back…" Gylfie muttered. "If he's back and gets the Pure Ones back under his control, then we're in big trouble!"

"I for one, have to agree with Soren." Digger stated. "I don't know how anyone could come back to life, but that looked too much like Kludd- even though he was wearing a mask, he has the voice, and the scar! What if he is back… but not evil?"

They were all hesitant. Soren was about to say something but heard metal and screeches coming from outside. They blinked and looked at the entrance to see two owls standing above two unconscious Kraals.

"Just like old times, eh Reiden?" One asked the owl named Reiden. Reiden churred.

"Just like old times! Nothing like a good fight with my ol' brother, Alterran!" He replied. They both walked into the cave and were then recognized as a Bay and White-Faced. They both looked at Coryn and bowed.

"Your Majesty." They both said at the same time. They both walked up to him and cut his ropes off. Alterran then walked over to Soren while Reiden cut down Digger.

"Who are you?" Coryn asked, recognizing them from Kiel Bay.

"Friends, King Coryn." Alterran answered, moving on to Gylfie.

"Friends here to get you out of here." Reiden answered, moving on to Twilight. They both walked to the center of the cave and nodded to each member of the Band.

"Who are you really?" Coryn asked again.

"You heard us talking outside, didn't you?" Reiden asked.

"Yes, but _who _are _you_?" Coryn was actually getting a little impatient and frustrated.

"We _know_ you have a lot of questions, and we'd _love_ to answer them, but we _really _need to be going now." Alterran said, walking back to the entrance.

"Hold on... What?" Gylfie asked, cocking her head as she looked at them. "You just freed us and then you walk away?"

"He mean's all of us!" Reiden answered, walking to the entrance as well. "Let's just say that nearly every Kraal in the Crack is after us and probably won't hesitate to kill us, so if you will just follow us we'll lead you to your stuff!"

They all quickly nodded and followed them out of the cave. They immediately saw another cave across from theirs and headed straight for it as they heard echoes of the Kraals coming their way. They landed inside the cave and were met by their masks and battle claws. They quickly put them on and ran outside back to the brothers.

"We got a moment now?" Soren asked. They heard yells and looked over to see at least forty Kraals flying towards them, and fast.

"NO! Fly now talk later!" Alterran yelled as he darted off in the opposite direction, followed by the rest.

"What could you have done to get them all stirred up?" Gylfie yelled up as she flew.

"One of our brothers flew through almost the entire Crack and lost them, afterwards rescuing us and making us go though them to get you out of here!" Reiden answered. "Just keep flying!"

* * *

><p><strong>Woot! Long wait, but one <strong>_**long**_** chapter! I was actually going to make it longer than this but I got very tired and decided to continue it in next chapter! And It was nice listening to "Warmness on the Soul" by Avenged Sevenfold (Such a sad and emotional song)! Sadly I might not get another chapter out anytime soon; I've got a camping trip coming up in not too long. So did you like it? Dislike it? Love it? Hate it? Think nothing of it?**

**Re: Shard. Alba - I actually had the thought of making them human again for a period of time in the story, but I wasn't sure people would agree with it. Now that I know at least **_**someone**_**agrees, I'll think about it…**


	17. Chapter 17

"We're almost there!" Alterran yelled back to the band.

"Where are you taking us?" Soren asked. Reiden flew in next to him.

"To the Tree, that's where."

"That explains why we've been flying for awhile now…" Gylfie muttered. "_Now _can you tell us who you are?"

Alterran slowed down a bit until he got by the Band's side with Reiden.

"As you heard, my name is Alterran, and this is my brother Reiden. We are not the only ones; we have two more brothers, and four newly acquired… friends." Alterran said.

"'Friends?" Digger asked. "Who are these 'friends'?"

"You saw them already, but you'll learn who they are soon enough, even though you have met them before... well, most of you have met most of them." Reiden answered. "The two of us along with one of our brothers fly around to find anything useful, and then report it to our last brother. From there, he takes the other four to 'sort out' the problem, such as Ambala, the Middle Kingdoms, and the Barrens."

"So why were you out there?" Coryn asked, cocking his head.

"Well…" Alterran started, looking down at the ocean below. "Our forth brother found some Pure One filesin the Barrens and told the four to get the information to us. He has a little _issue _and can get very… well, we'd rather not explain. Anyways, we were all shocked by the news, but we knew that we had to help him. And we have you to thank for us finding him."

"Us?" The Band blurted out all at the same time. Reiden churred.

"Yeah, you see… We didn't know where he was going so we were searching quickly. I we at the Great Tree and I learned of what you were doing so you gave us the location. And it seems your Fire and Star sights are getting stronger." He complemented.

"Thank you…" Soren whispered, and then perked up. "Wait a moment, how did you know about our abilities?"

"We have our ways." Alterran answered. "Before Coryn just saw images, but this time he saw it as if he were actually there and heard it. You're both gifted with this for good reasons, and I'm thankful that you have them and improved, otherwise our brother could have died. Only problem was the fact that you were flying right into a trap."

"And where did you learn to fight like that back there?" Twilight asked. Now both of the brothers churred.

"Oh, Twilight. You're just always into battle now, aren't you?" Alterran said as Reiden took the lead. "We're not trained; we're gifted. Actually, we're gifted, and then we train ourselves to use what you were gifted. It's a rather long story; one we can explain when we can."

"By the way, who is your brother who went off to Kiel Bay?" Gylfie asked. They glanced hesitantly.

"Well," Reiden started. "You've already met him, I believe- well, the uncle and nephew have, at least."

Now it was Coryn and Soren who glanced at each other while the rest of the Band looked at them.

"We have?" They asked at the same time. Reiden looked back at them.

"He sent you a letter, and then he knocked you out to send your mind to a 'mental world' to speak with you. I wouldn't underestimate him though; he's a bit more… full of words, skill, and talent than us."

"What kind of 'talent'?" Twilight questioned. Alterran glared at him.

"By _talent_, we mean by being a good strategist, eyes better than an eagle, ears more sensitive than a Barn Owl's, a mind of intelligence, and the strength to kill over ten Hagsfeinds on his own!"

"Hagsfeinds?" They all blurted out in surprise once again. Alterran sighed.

"Yes, Hagsfeinds; we've seen them before, and we've killed them before. Oh, how to put it… We've lived for… A very long time now. You see, we don't age; we live through more events than one could ever and we've met a lot of new, old and similar foes. Almost all of them we've defeated."

"So… You've seen all there is to see?" Gylfie said.

"No." Reiden answered. "There's more beyond this world, and it's just too much for us to see. They don't exist here, and we don't exist there."

"I'm afraid that's all we can answer, for now." Alterran interrupted. "The Tree is in sight, and it won't be long until we get there. We cannot and will not accompany you there, for it is your place to be. Ours is elsewhere."

"So what do we tell them?" Coryn questioned. Alterran got to where all five of them could see him.

"Do NOT tell them of us: If we are mentioned out to the Great Tree, word will spread like a forest fire. If the Pure Ones learn of our presence in working with you directly, they'll be prepared. What we need for now, is for you to keep your beaks shut, and not to speak about publicly until we say so. Feel free to tell Otulissa, but no one else! Just say that by the time you got there we'd already come and gone, leaving nothing but the remains of Pure Ones scattered throughout the islands. Understand?"

They nodded as the two began to head right from their view.

"Wait!" Soren called after them, but they continued to fly away. "Who are the other four?"

"You'll find out soon enough!" One of them called back.

* * *

><p>Zarko continued flying through the Crack in search of the one he was looking for. It had been about a good five minutes since he left Alterran and Reiden, and he hoped that they'd gotten the Band to safety. He cared for their safety, but he also cared very much for finding Valcia. Luckily for him, there weren't very many Kraals in his path- probably because of his brothers going through them brought them to the other side of the Crack.<p>

He loved the icy feel against his feathers, probably because of him warming himself from so much fighting! To him, the Kraals were just poor sods that just did as they liked, which he completely respected. The Kraals were always into riches and luxury, combining it with power… too much power.

He looked forwards and saw another three Kraals taking off in his direction. The first one's battle claws were aimed for his dyed mask, but he barrel-rolled to the left and flew straight for the next. The second Kraal looked like he was about to go yeep at the sudden charge but Zarko had pushed head first into is gizzard and continued flying blindly through the air. He felt a bump and a sudden addition of weight and he could only guess that he'd crashed them straight into the last Kraal, and eventually hit the wall. The back one was knocked out while the front was just temporarily disoriented. He fixed that by punching him square in the face and rolled off him just in time to avoid a pair of battle claws that were about to impale his back. He looked up and saw that the Kraal had just missed the other two and got his battle claws stuck in the rock. Zarko took this moment and clanged his masked face against the Kraals exposed head, making him fall back unconscious.

_Fight, fight, fight… why must it always end with such violence? I am glad I can avoid killing them ,and it's many fewer souls I don't have to regret taking._

He nodded to himself and continued flying until he saw a cave with about five more Kraals guarding it. He immediately knew that this was this was the cave as he now saw that he could go no further. He smirk widely under his mask as he bolted straight for the Kraals. The five got their eyes widened.

"Who in Glaux name is _that_?" One asked as he kept his eyes fixed on him, forgetting the fact that they didn't know the answer.

"I don't know, but I'm not sticking around to find out!" Another yelled as he took off towards the ceiling of the Crack and out of sight.

"Get back here, coward!" Yet another called after him. "The Captain will have your gizzard if you don't help us!"

Zarko merely churred in amusement at the cowering- probably due to the skeleton design he'd painted over himself. He began to charge them faster and before they could say a thing, he had flown over the first one to the left and let his talons hang far enough to let the blunt part of the battle claws bunk him on the head hard enough to knock him out, and landed head first into the next. The one he'd landed on gasped for breath with his eyes widened more than they already were and were closed by the butt of a sword hitting him on the head. Zarko turned towards the next one charging at him and leaned to the right to avoid a straight lunge, grabbed the leg, and actually flipped him over single-talonedly. (I know that's not a word)

He looked towards the last one and saw that it was the one that had called the one that flew off a coward… and now it was _he _whom was trembling like a coward. Zarko smirked and walked slowly towards him as he began to back up. Eventually his back was against the wall so he glanced back and then up at Zarko. Zarko stopped mere inches (In human measurement the way we see them) from him, and store down in his shaking eyes. He stopped shaking and there was an uncomfortable silence.

"…"

"…"

"…Boo."

"AHHHHHHH!"

The Kraal began flying off down the Crack, screaming as if he'd just seen the Devil himself. Zarko churred loudly in amusement once again, which made him fly faster. Zarko just shook his head and turned back to the entrance of the cave with a serious look.

He began to walk into the nearly pitch black cave. He looked around and took off his mask to reveal his non-dyed face.

"Valcia?" He called. No answer.

He put his mask down next to the cave exit and continued walking further into the cave, scanning the walls carefully. He then felt his feet becoming wet. He stopped cold and sniffed the air.

"Blood…" He whispered. "Not hers, though."

If anyone would've heard him, they'd probably think he was a vampire. But instead, he'd been near leaked blood so much he knew the smell, and he could surely recognize the blood of those closes to him. He took another step forward, and upon putting his next foot out, it hit something. He immediately recognized the feel of feathers, thick feathers.

_A Kraal? _He thought, knowing that the thickness was indeed a coat of paint. He looked back at the entrance and saw that it was growing smaller. _A really deep cave, this one._

He shrugged it off and stepped over the body. In the matter of seconds, he could no longer see any spec of light. He worked with what he could see and saw a torch on the ground next to him. He smiled and pick it up. Looking around, he noticed that there was nothing to ignite it with.

Sighing, he turning his attention to the tip of the torch and held a foot up to it. A few seconds past, and surprisingly, his talons lit up on fire and lit the torch in the process. He lowered his talons as the fire began to vanish, and he now had a source of light. He put the torch in his beak so he could walk instead of hopping on one foot and began to see what he could.

The dead body he'd past was a Great Grey from the looks of it, with his feathers dyed blue, mixed with the red from his blood. The walls of the cave were black with a glimmering silver. The top of the cave was probably three times his height, and the wideness would take about five of him standing side-by-side. Up ahead he saw the dead body of another Kraal. This one was a Northern Saw-Whet with his feathers dyed fiery red, also mixed with the dark red of his blood.

He began to walk forward until he got to what looked like the end of the cave, and he saw a stick coming out of the ground, with loose chains hanging from it.

"What!" He said, peering closer. "How did-"

He never got to finish that sentence as something collided against the back of his head, causing him to drop the torch as it rolled to the side, and hit the ground. He groaned as he got up.

"Zarko?" A feminine voice whispered. Zarko's veins ran cold, and his orange eyes began starring at nothing.

"…Valcia…?"

There was complete silence as they couldn't believe the voices they'd just heard. Zarko pushed his wing on the ground in front of him to raise himself a high enough for him to turn his head in an almost 180 degree angle. And he was immediately met by the face of a very large Chestnut-Backed Owl, holding a stick that had broken in half, and she dropped.

"…Zarko?" She said once more, not believing her eyes. Zarko stood up and they were almost the exact same height. This was very surprising considering that Chestnut-Backed Owls were an average of 19cm, while Northern Hawks were 36-42.5cm tall, yet Zarko was big for his kind! Zarko's fiery orange eyes store into her emerald green eyes- as it also went the other way around- in complete silence filled with shock, surprise, and gratefulness.

"Is… Is it really you?" Zarko whispered. She slowly nodded as he raised a wing up to her face and stroked it gently, despite the metal wings which she didn't mind. She did the same to his face, their eyes still locked. Eventually, Zarko wrapped his wings around her and hugged her both gently and tightly- if that was even possible. Valcia did the same. "I… I thought you were dead…"

"I…" She trailed off. The was the first time in forever Zarko'd ever felt like this. Zarko let go of he and looked at her straight in the eyes.

"How… How are you alive?" He asked, in a light tone. She frowned slightly.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean… I saw it myself- Arctus took over me! He made me stab you to death, and yet you lived through all of that! I-I even ripped your heart out! S-So how…" She held a talon up to his beak, silencing him.

"That explains it then…"

"What explains what?"

She looked back up at him.

"I was never killed; you never did that. I remember that Arctus men came in and took me, and you just fell unconscious. Maybe you just had a hallucination! A false vision! I've been a prisoner ever since, for about… what, five years now?"

"Wha…? No… no, no, no, NO! That can't be possible! I felt every aspect of it! I felt your blood, my skin, I felt it all for real… And it's been well over ten thousand years now!"

"What?" She exclaimed. "That can't be right… Unless, of course…"

"'Of course,' what?"

"Unless he'd put me in a coma; when they barged in that night, they knocked me out right after you. So… what if all this time I just…"

"That would make sense..." Zarko muttered. "If he'd did, whatever he did to make me hallucinate, so powerful that I could feel everything, then that would mean he's just been playing me; making me wonder if it was my fault for what happened or if you'd known that I was controlled when you never died in the first place." He said. "I need to catch you up on everything, I guess."

"Wait!" She stopped him. He looked at her in confusion. "I need to tell you something…"

"What is it?"

"Well… I've been planning something… something very big- big enough to help us fight Arctus' army when its time."

Zarko looked into her emerald eyes closely.

"I'm listening."

* * *

><p><strong>Wow! I got this finished at T-minus eight hours until the camping trip! Anyways, I'm glad to have gotten this out before I left, and I'm looking forward to reading all of your reviews! Also, I got the mention of "Vampire" Because… well, on Skyrim the DLC called "Dawnguard" came out yesterday… And in thirteen hours, I beat it. Well, half of it anyways; I finished the Dawnguard (Vampire Hunters) side, but now I'm already about halfway done with the Vampire side XD man, I'm a n00b. Also, I got the story behind Zarko and Valcia from the song "A Little Piece of Heaven" by Avenged Sevenfold. The words were said in the song by The Rev himself, "Must have stabbed her fifty f***ing times, I can't believe it; ripped her heart out right before her eyes, eyes over easy!" (I LOVE that line!) Yeah, I forgot to mention that, didn't I? The way how I get about half of the ideas for the story, is by playing videogames, listening to music, watching TV, or even just using random things I see around me! Mostly A7X music, though…<strong>

**P.S. Sorry if the romance isn't that great; I've NEVER been in a relationship before!**

**Crazybird101- Oh, don't worry; I know what you mean. A little tip; on , when you put words together with a period in between them but no spaces, it won't show up, so you have to put the spaces. This is commonly known when posting links on here (Not on forums, though). And hey! I played PMD: EoS as well and beat it three times XD The ending was pretty sad, as was the little cartoon short.**


	18. Chapter 18

**Best. Camping trip. Ever. ****Day one; I get to roast marshmallows and climb a waterfall. Day two; I get to go rock-climbing, but it was on a mountain. The bad part about that was, we ALL (About twenty people) took a wrong turn and were lost for about two to three hours and ran around about a good ten miles. As it turned out, it was right next to the entrance... Later that night, there were four astronomers in the area looking with telescopes into space. Three of them had a good look at the moon, but the last one was the size of a freakin' cannon! The guy said it cost about $3,000, and when I looked through it, guess what I saw... SATURN! All the way from EARTH! 2.8 BILLION miles away!**

**Anyways…**

* * *

><p>"Great Glaux, where is he?" Thora muttered from the edge of the hollow as they waited for Zarko's return. Uglamore sighed and walked up next to her.<p>

"We just need to wait; he's got the Kraals on his tail, and they certainly aren't going to appreciate him lying to them and breaking out of their grasp." He tried to calm her down. She turned her head back to him.

"He's been gone for two days now. Alterran and Reiden got here already as well. I'm starting to get worried."

"He'll make it." Alterran said from the back of the hollow. Clay, Kludd, Thora and Uglamore all turned their heads back to him.

"What do you mean?" Clay asked.

"He's killed his foes more successfully than two of the exact same armies could handle. I doubt just a few Kraals can stop him."

"What 'foes' do you mean?" Kludd asked, walking up to him. Alterran sighed.

"Mainly when he was a Human; the technologies of the Humans were very advanced. So advanced that they didn't even have to use swords or anything bladed."

"What was the technology like?" Kludd was now intrigued.

"It's… It's complicated. It'd be best for you to see it yourself."

"How do we see it if there are no Oth… _Humans _here?" Thora asked. Alterran laughed.

"Well… Alcrus and Reiden are off tending to other things, so I guess I could show you." He said, flying past them and out of the hollow. They all hesitantly glanced at each other before following suit.

When they arrived at Alterran's hollow, he immediately walked up to a bag and began searching through it, leaving the four owls behind him clueless.

"Oh, come on; I know it's in here!" He mumbled to himself as he through random stuff out. He was groaning in annoyance as he could clearly not find what he wanted. Kludd leaned over to Clay and whispered,

"Any idea what he's looking for?"

"Not a single clue." He whispered back. "Considering not a single owl alive has seen one, we have not much information on them."

"That's not entirely true!" Alterran waved back, grabbing their attention. "No owls to have ever lived _here _in the six kingdoms have not seen one. But _beyond _these six kingdoms, they're more than eighty-five trillion out there."

He finished by pulling out a brown, leather case. He set it in front of them as the four got side by side in a curved line to see it. Alterran looked up at all of them carefully.

"Listen very closely now; what I am about to show you, can literally take your life before you could so much as blink. So whatever you do… do not touch it. Do I make myself clear?"

They all nodded slowly. Alterran nodded back and opened the case to reveal its contents.

Inside was all a wavy red material. But in between that, was a black L-shaped object. They all looked at it with shock and curiosity as it sat there, motionless. Alterran slowly said,

"You may not understand what I'm saying, but this is something called a 'gun'; one of the most dangerous weapons ever designed. There are different types of guns, and this one is classified as a 'pistol'. It may not look like much, but I can guarantee that it could easily kill anything in its path when used."

They all just store at it in interest. Eventually, Uglamore looked up at him. "How does it work?"

"I can explain it to you, but it might not make any sense. I cannot demonstrate because it is not designed in a way for an owl to use it. What you see in between the cornet is the trigger. The metal object you see to the side is called a bullet. The bullet is packed with a type of powder at the back of it, and is put into the barrel of the gun. When the trigger is pulled, a pin hits the powder inside the bullet, causing it to ignite and create a very small explosion inside of it and forces the bullet out in the only direction it can go at lightning speed. The blow is so powerful it can go straight through wood, or even a few bodies!" He explained, simply as he could.

Uglamore nodded, understanding what he meant. Clay understood everything but how the explosion is created, but kept it to himself. Kludd and Thora were both clueless about what he meant but ignored it. Alterran closed the case and put it back in the bag.

"You need to understand that you should _never _mess with it; we can't use it while balancing on one foot, so just leave it be."

They looked at him oddly, but he put the bag back and flew out before they could say anything. They were once again left confused. They all flew out of the hollow and went their separate ways.

* * *

><p>Kludd couldn't sleep. He'd been sitting there with his eyes closed, but he just couldn't slip away from reality. His thoughts were just… he couldn't tell, but his mind felt weird.<p>

_Ugh… Great Glaux, why can't I sleep?_

He opened his eyes and was looking at nothing but his empty hollow. He sighed and walked out to the exit and looked out at the sun-lit forest. Kludd decided that he just needed to fly out and eat something. As he flew, he was wondering about why Zarko hadn't shown up yet.

_I just don't understand what's keeping him… _Kludd's thoughts trailed off as he began to hear a heartbeat. He looked around and saw a vole stopped on the ground, smelling around. Kludd flew in and his talons embraced the vole's body as he flew. He landed on the nearest branch and dug his talons into the skin of the squirming rodent until it was motionless. He smiled and flew back to his hollow.

As he flew he remembered the first time he'd gotten on the island. _Strange how I couldn't find any prey then and now all the sudden I've found one without a problem. _He shrugged as his hollow came into view and he flew in to see everything the way it was when he left. He figured he'd have to eat the vole raw so he went ahead and put it down. As he was eating, he was thinking.

_I can't remember the last time I've eaten alone. That was probably… at the Great Tree? Now that I think about it, it's been at least a year I've known everyone. All I could wish for now is to let Soren know that I am not the one to hold responsible. All I want is to be with my family, and tell live without them thinking that I was evil. If only Mum and Da knew…_

He was now halfway done and right about to take another bite when he heard wing beats from outside his hollow.

_Who else would be awake at this time? _He left his vole and went over to the entrance and was met by a Snowy perched right outside. "Thora?"

"Hey Kludd…" She whispered.

"What're you doing here?"

"Well… I just couldn't sleep so I was just wondering what you were up to."

"Oh, I couldn't sleep. I don't know why, though." He answered. "I just can't figure out why Zarko hasn't gotten back yet."

"Okay, I better let you get back to sleep. I'm just going to go hunt for something." She was about to take off when Kludd stopped her.

"Wait!" He called she turned back to him. Kludd was a little nervous saying this. "I-um… I j-just got back fr-from hunting and found a vole. I just got about halfway done eating so… You can have the rest, if you don't mind it not being whole…"

Thora stared at Kludd for a few seconds and blinked. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah- I mean, I'm not that hungry and it'd spare you some time."

She took another moment to answer, but shrugged. "Okay, then."

She entered and looked around. A few moments later she approached the half-eaten vole and began finishing it as Kludd watched. He silently sighed.

_She really doesn't look that bad for a Snowy; the black mixed with white actually seems very nice. _He thought. If he weren't an owl, he would've been blushing right now. He turned his head slightly to make it look like he was thinking about something else. _Glaux, what would she think of me about this?_

She noticed his looks and looked at him curiously with worry. "Is something wrong?"

"Wha…? No! No- just, things have been bothering me."

"Like what?" She asked, biting into the vole.

"It's just… Every living other owl living thinks that I'm a murderous Pure One; everyone hates me, my brother doesn't know what to think of me from hearing me vowing to kill him, and my parent's think that I had no place on this world and that I was better off dead…" He said, looking away as a tear rolled down his face. This was true, considering that he'd been earlier thinking about this and Zarko'd told him about what everyone thought of him. Thora sighed in depression.

"I know what you mean…" She replied. "My step-mother tried to kill me, and my father died all on the same day. But what they think of you now does not matter; how should they have known? They didn't know that you were controlled!"

"Yes, but…" He trailed off, turning his head in her direction but looking at the floor. "I just can't live like this for another day; darkness had me condemned and grim as ever. Every living soul thinks me differently than what I really am- That I swore to kill my brother, lead an army of Tytos that believed that other owls should not exist, that I killed my very own parents- and I just can't bear it…"

Thora got up and walked over to him and put her wing under his beak and pointed his face to wear he could see her eyes.

"Zarko's trying the best he can to let the world know, but he can't just walk up to the open world and claim that it was his brother who controlled you- they would've done something to him without evidence!" Thora tried to comfort him, and Kludd just sighed once more as he looked back down.

"I suppose you're right…" He murmured. He then looked back up in realization. "Well, I can see you've finished the vole. I shouldn't keep you up any longer, so go on."

"Actually…" She now was the one to trail off. "I'm too tired and I really don't want to fly out in the rain back to my hollow. Would it be alright if I spend the night here?"

Kludd had no idea how to answer this. He would be blushing once again if it weren't for his species, and he now realized that it was raining harshly.

"Uh, um- Of course!" He stuttered hesitantly. Thora frowned.

"Really? You sound unsure…"

"No, I'm sure! I'm the one who offered you to stay and eat in the first place! It'd be my fault if I made you fly tiredly back in the rain!" Kludd confirmed, nodding nervously. She seemed concerned but didn't say anything.

"So, where should I sleep then?"

"Oh, just sleep anywhere- it doesn't matter." Kludd answered as he got to where he was sleeping earlier.

Thora looked around and stood in the other corner of the hollow and looked at him.

"Goodlight, Kludd." She said, closing her eyes.

"Goodlight." Kludd closed his as well.

A few seconds past…

"Hey, Kludd?"

"Yes?"

"I'm a little cold… Would it be alright if I slept with you?"

Okay… Again, if owls could blush, he'd be the only living red Barn Owl at the moment. He now hopped her eyes were still closed, because he dared not open his.

"… I guess, if you want to…" He nervously answered. He heard footsteps until he felt feathers brush up against his. He was now indeed, _very _nervous.

"Thank you…" She whispered.

He opened his eyes and looked over at the dark Snowy whose eyes were closed.

"… No problem…"

He closed his eyes, and the last thing he heard was the rain hitting the ground, and the thunder booming through the skies.

* * *

><p>Kludd awoke feeling rested. He yawned silently and felt warm. He slowly opened his black eyes and saw that Thora was still sleeping next to him. He slightly smiled as a warm sensation came over him. Outside of the hollow, the sun was now setting. He sighed happily as he closed his eyes for a few seconds, until-<p>

"Hey, Kludd! Wake u-"

Racdrops.

His eyes shot open and he saw Uglamore perched outside his hollow, starring in shock with his beak agape. Kludd glared at him in embarrassment.

"U-um… Sorry?" Uglamore apologized, cocking his head as he too was embarrassed. Kludd only sighed in annoyance.

"What is it, Uglamore?" Uglamore was still starring until Kludd coughed, snapping him out of it.

"W-Well, Alcrus said that he saw two owls flying here, and one of them was Zarko."

"Really?" Kludd replied with excitement.

"Yeah! Alcrus told me to get you while he got Alterran and Reiden and Clay get Thora… but I can clearly see that…"

"Go on."

"Well, he seemed pretty excited for some reason, and told us to wake you all up as fast as we could, so that what we-"

"Uglamore! I can't find Tho-"

Great father Glaux!

Clay now stood there in the same state Uglamore was.

"…Whoops."

* * *

><p><strong>Hope that the chapter didn't seem too bad, and PLEASE R&amp;R! (Which have noticeably increased ever since I got the new title… THANK YOU SHARD . ALBA!)<strong>


	19. Chapter 19

**I need to say this- and I'll be honest… There is no problem at all when you express what you think will happen next, because sometimes I don't even know what next! Every suggestion helps improve my story and bring it another step higher!**

**Also, there is going to be a song, and the lyrics might not make sense for owls, so don't come complaining about that! The song is called "Seize the Day" by Avenged Sevenfold (Yes, I'm a HUGE A7X fan!). So of course, I don't own the lyrics, they are owned by M. Shadows (Vocals), Synister Gates (Lead Guitarist, Backing Vocals), Zacky Vengeance (Acoustic Guitar ((For this song)), Backing Vocals ((Does the intro in live performances)), Johnny Christ (Bass Guitarist ((Does intro in LBC)), and James Owen "The Reverend" Sullivan (Drums, Piano, AMAZING Backing Vocalist!) (R.I.P. The Rev foREVer!). And if you're going to listen to it while reading the part, I'd listen to the "Live in the LBC (Long Beach California)" version. That one is GREAT!**

* * *

><p>"They said that Zarko was back?" Thora asked, flying right behind them.<p>

"That's what they said!" Uglamore answered, still a little surprised by what he'd seen earlier. "Two owls; one was Zarko. I don't understand why they were so happy though!"

"Maybe it's because Zarko made it back?" Clay suggested.

"No, that can't be." Uglamore replied. "Otherwise, they wouldn't have been saying that he'd make it back."

"Could it be that other owl?" Kludd wondered. Uglamore hummed at this.

"You may be right…" He said, looking down. "Who else would be coming here?"

"Wait a moment…" Thora said, also looking down as she began to think as she flew. "What about that story Zarko told us about back at Kiel Bay?"

"What story?" Clay asked, looking over at her.

"You know! The one abou-"

"Well, whatever it is, we're about to find out." Uglamore interrupted as Zarko's hollow came into view.

They flew in and stopped short at what they saw; Alterran, Alcrus, Reiden and Zarko surrounding a Chestnut-Backed Owl.

"It's great to see you alive and well!" Reiden said as he gently hugged the Chestnut-Backed Owl.

"Alive and well indeed!" She replied, returning the hug. Next she turned to Alcrus.

"It's been too long." He said, holding his talons out to her.

"Far too long." He agreed, shaking his talons. When they let go, she next went to Alterran, who just nodded.

"I thought you dead." He smiled.

"We all did." She corrected. "I even thought I was dead sometimes!"

"Um… Zarko?" Kludd spoke up, grabbing their attention. "Who is this?"

Zarko glanced at his brothers, and they just nodded. Zarko turned back to them and glanced between all of them.

"Everyone… I'd like you to meet a very dear friend of mine." He said, turning back to the Chestnut-Backed Owl. "This is Valcia."

The four owls stared at Valcia, completely shocked by what they were seeing. They'd figured that since Zarko was a Northern Hawk, that _she'd _be a Northern Hawk as well. Kludd then remembered what he said about him and Thora. "_It doesn't matter who or what you love. It can be good and evil, owl and owl, owl and something else- It just doesn't matter! All that matters is that they love each other."_

Zarko wasn't kidding when he said that! The thing that surprised him the most (Other than different species) was the emerald green eyes- _very _unusual for an owl. She was also HUGE for a Chestnut-Backed! Valcia smiled.

"It's great to finally meet you all!" She said looking at them. "Life really is great when you get a second chance, isn't it?"

"…How are you alive?" Kludd whispered in surprise, now remembering the story Thora was talking about.

"We were about to ask the same thing." Alcrus said.

"Well…" She said, looking back at Zarko. He nodded, telling her to go on. "As I already explained to Zarko; I never died. When he found me in the Crack, we came to the conclusion that he was seeing a vision put in his mind by Arctus, because I was knocked out, not killed. He was simply put into unconsciousness. I've been in a coma from then until five years ago. I'd been imprisoned for a while until I was transported to Kiel Bay. I think you all know the rest…

All was silent for a moment, until Reiden broke the silence.

"That son of a mooncalf…"

"You know, you shouldn't say that." Alterran interrupted. (One; you're his brother. Two; we don't have a father (Glaux doesn't count!)."

"You know what I meant…"

"Anyways…" Zarko said before they could go any further. "I know Valcia just got with us again and all… but we have an option that can give us the upper hand in the upcoming war. Unfortunately, Valcia will have to be away for it to work…"

"…What?" Alcrus whispered under his breath. Zarko sighed.

"I don't like it any more than you do, but it's out best course of action." He said sadly. "I'm afraid that the plans are secret and we cannot risk telling any of you. I don't mean to be offensive, but it's for the best. For now… just get to your daily schedules…"

Clay, Kludd and Uglamore took a moment to leave but didn't wait around to for everyone else to go. On their way flying…

"_So_… Kludd, what was that we saw back at your hollow?" Clay joked with a grin. Kludd grumbled,

"It's a long story…" He lied. Uglamore churred.

"Well, we're not going anywhere! We've got a _long _time!" Uglamore protested. Kludd sighed in annoyance.

"Alright, alright!" He gave up, landing on a branch across from Clay and Uglamore. "I couldn't sleep last morning, and I didn't know why. I was trying sleep for about an hour or two, until I finally decided to go out and hunt. I caught a vole and brought it back to my hollow to eat, and when I was about halfway done Thora came over. I asked her what she was doing there but she'd said that she couldn't sleep either so she was wondering if I was awake. We talked for a few moments and he thought that he was disturbing me and was going to go out and hunt. I was already done with my vole so I offered her the rest. Afterwards, she said she was too tired to fly back to her hollow and it had started raining. I told her that she could stay and sleep in my hollow. She slept in the other side of the hollow but she got cold and wanted to sleep with me. I didn't want to sound mean, so I told her she could. And you know the rest." Kludd explained. They were silent until Clay churred.

"Guess I was right!" He smirked, nudging Uglamore. Uglamore just rolled his eyes and groaned in annoyance. Kludd was now confused.

"What?" He asked. Clay looked back over at him, still smirking.

"Well, after you freed Alcrus, Thora and Uglamore we made a bet since the way you acted when you cut her down…" He explained. Kludd was now embarrassed because of this. "Oh, don't worry about it."

"Let's just forget about this…" Kludd grumbled once again.

* * *

><p>"You know I have to be leaving soon, Zarko." Valcia said to the Northern hawk who was looking out the hollow entrance at the beautiful full moon.<p>

"I know." He said, turning to her with a sad expression on his face. "But I just wish I could have more time with you…"

"I do, too…" She replied, putting a wing on his shoulder. "But when we finish, we'll have all of the time in the world!"

"I just can't wait sometime; patience is a hard thing to keep."

"I know…" Valcia smiled. "So why not make it last? I haven't heard you sing in awhile."

Zarko smiled back sheepishly. "Hm… I dunno…"

"Don't worry- you'll do fine!" She cheered him on. He smiled more confidently now. He went to the back of his hollow and began digging in a bag. When he pulled out what he was looking for, it turned out to be an acoustic guitar. He smiled once again at her and flew out to the top of the tree as he looked at the night sky. He took a breath in and began to play.

**Seize the day, or die regretting all the time you've lost.**

**It's empty and cold without you here- too many people to ach over.**

**I see my vision burn, I feel my memories fade with time… But I'm too young to worry.**

**The streets we traveled on, will undergo our same lost past…**

**I found you here, so please just stay for awhile- I can move on with you around.**

**I hand you, my mortal life but, will it be forever?**

**I'd do, anything for a smile, holdin' ya 'til our time is done.**

**We both know, the day will come but, I don't wanna leave you!**

**I see my vision burn, I feel my memories fade with time… But I'm too you to worry…**

**A memory, a melody, or just one picture…**

**Seize the day or die regretting all the time you've lost!**

**It's empty and cold without you here- too many people to ach over!**

**New born life, replacin' all of us… Changing his fable we live in.**

**No longer, needed here so, where do we go?**

**Will you take a journey tonight? Follow me past the walls of death?**

**But girl, what if there is, no eternal life?**

**I see my vision burn, I feel my memories fade with time… But I'm too young to worry…**

**A memory! A melody! Or just one picture!**

**Seize the day or die regretting all the time you've lost!**

**It's empty and cold without you here- too many people to ach over!**

**Oh-oh-yeeaah…**

**Trials in life- questions of us existing here! Don't wanna die alone without you here please tell me what we have is real!**

***Guitar Solo A***

**Ohhh, yeah-yeah-eeaah!**

***Guitar Solo B***

**So what if I never hold you?**

**Yeah-EAh-EAh-eeeaahhh!**

**Or kiss your lips again!**

**WHOA-Whoa-ooohhh!**

**And I never wanna leave you!**

**And the memories! Of us to see! I beg don't leave me!**

**Seize the day or die regretting all the time you've lost!**

**It's empty and cold without you here- too many people to ach over!**

**Oh-oh-yeeaah…**

**Trials in life- questions of us existing here! Don't wanna die alone without you here please tell me what we have is real!**

***Second Solo***

**Silence, you lost me- no chance for one more day…**

**Silence, you lost me- no chance for one more day…**

**Well I'm stuck here alone! **

**(Silence, you lost me- no chance for one more day!)**

**Fallin' away from you- no chance to get back home!**

**(Silence, you lost me- no chance for one more day!)**

**Well I'm stuck here alone!**

**(Silence, you lost me- no chance for one more day!)**

**Falling away from here- no chance to get back home!**

**(Silence, you lost me- no chance for one more day!)**

And with that, he held the last note, out of breath. He spent a few moments taking breaths, but eventually turned back to Valcia.

"Thanks for the parts I can't do at the same time…" He smiled.

"Anything for you, love." She smiled back. They saw that the sun was rising and she needed to get going for the _plan _she'd come up with. "I guess I need to go, then…"

"Alright…" He sighed sadly. "I'll be here, waiting."

"Alright then…" And with that, she took off. She got about a good few wingspans away before…

"WAIT!" Zarko called after her. She turned around to face him in confusion. "I never got an answer to what I've been waiting for a very long time now!"

Valcia was confused at first, but then it hit her. She only smiled.

"You already know the answer."

And with that, she flew away into the rising sun. Zarko was left there. And what happened next was something that had never happened in millenniums.

A single tear rolled down his face.

* * *

><p><strong>How was that chapter? Good? Bad? Sorry if it seemed a little short; I was a little eager to get this out, and either way it's a bit earlier than I anticipated… And Valcia sang the "()"ed parts of the song. Also, what'd you think about the song?<strong>

**Crazybird101- I've seen a red moon, too! I was like… two? Maybe three? Perhaps four?**


	20. Chapter 20

**Okay… I really don't like the previous chapter as a self opinion; I feel that I didn't put **_**enough **_**into it, if you know what I mean. Also, I just got done watching the first episode to a Japanese dog series called… what was it? Ginga Densetsu Weed, or something like that? My opinion on it? Music's a bit weird (Considering there's no English version- just subtitles), and it may be a little strange because the characters' mouths are always hanging open… But overall, it was actually pretty enjoyable. **_**Ah**_**, what am I****going on about? You want to see **_**this**_**, not **_**that**_**!**

* * *

><p>"Where's Valcia?" Thora asked as Zarko entered the hollow. Zarko sighed and walked past her.<p>

"Like I said last night; she has a plan the will help us against Arctus." He answered simply. "But that's not important. What is important, is the fact that we need more to help win the Battle of the Beyond- the War of the Ember."

Zarko leaned over his map on the stump and took a moment to take it in, and then looked over a Alterran, Alcrus and Reiden with a smirk. Reiden got worried.

"Um… why are you staring at us like that?"

"Boys… I think it's time to fight fear with fear." Zarko answered.

"What are you talking about?" Alcrus asked, now worried as well.

"I mean, we need to strike fear into the Pure Ones. They are feared, but it's time for them to know fear. But the only way to do that… is in the Palace of Mists…"

Now it was Alterran who grew wide-eyed. "You can't be serious."

"Oh, I'm serious, alright."

"But why?" Alcrus protested. "We promised not to use it again unless it was absolutely necessary!"

"And it is." He smirked wider. "The best course of action for this coming battle, is to beat them in technology that'll strike fear into the hearts of the ones that tremble at the very mention of them."

"Hold up a moment!" Clay said, holding up his wings as he got in between them. He glance at them with an irritated expression. When he felt that they were all calm and content, he took a deep breath and looked at Zarko. "What is the Palace of Mists, and what's in there?"

"The Palace of Mists… Old place, that one. If I recall, I gave a very short exclamation to it. But a better way to say it, is that the Palace of Mist is where the four of us resided as humans for awhile here in the owl kingdoms as we studied geography of the lands. Eventually, we were found out by Arctus and had to abandon the place. He'd sent humans under his control after us, but we'd turned them to stone. Don't ask how, because it isn't important. At the current moment, it is the home of Bess, who's studied the Palace, and has never left the place. What's in there, is one of the many keys to opening the door that keeps the pathway to victorious peace closed. All we need to do is go in there, grab a few crates we stored in there, and carry them back to here. It's not as easy as it sounds though, as we need every muscle in those legs to carry such due to weight. Not only that, but the only way to be unnoticed is while she's out hunting."

"So what is it we're looking for?" Uglamore asked. Zarko shuddered slightly.

"Just a very large crate or two. We can't remember what exactly is in them, because we never opened them." He answered once again. "I don't know what's in there, so I'm going to open it when we get there just to be safe. That's all you need to be aware of, for now. We'll be leaving in an hour, so go do what you need to do before we head out. Dismissed."

Everyone nodded and left, but Kludd was still there, looking down at the ground.

"Kludd?" Kludd blinked and looked up at him. "Something bothering you?"

"… Y-Yes, actually…" He trailed off.

"You can tell me, Kludd; whatever it is, I can help." Zarko said he walked towards him and stopped a few inches away. (In the length we'd see owls! Not inches away like humans…) Kludd was looking down again and was still unsure. A few seconds later, he sighed and gave up.

"Would you really be willing to prove my innocence?" He asked doubtfully. Zarko was silent until he now sighed.

"Kludd… I understand you have doubts, but we all do. I even doubt that I every decision I make will get us all alive safely. Nothing is impossible, Kludd… And I didn't bring to back to life just to help me- I did it to help you and others." While saying all of this, he'd put a wingtip on his shoulder. Kludd looked up at him. "I'm not angry that you doubt me, but you just need to put some trust into me. I pledge by my very soul that I'll get the world to know the truth. And changing the subject, anything on Thora?"

"Wha…? Oh, yeah. Actually, two days ago -the day before you got back- I couldn't sleep so I went out to hunt. I caught a vole and when I was about halfway done eating it in my hollow, Thora showed up. She said that she couldn't sleep, so she'd come to see what I was up to. She said that she was hungry and was going to hunt but I told her that she could have the rest of mine since I was done with it anyways. We talked for awhile, and then she asked if she could sleep in my hollow because it was raining and she was too tired to fly back. I told her she could, but later she was cold so she asked if she could sleep with me, and I said yes."

Zarko was silent for a few moments, until he smirked. "Well, ain't that somethin'?"

* * *

><p>Bess perched up and quickly glance around. She'd just heard something- she was sure of it. She'd just been eating when it came out of nowhere. Now she heard it clearly; wing beats. Someone was coming. Bess glanced around again and noticed a closet. With no time to lose, she flew inside of it and shut the door. She cracked it open just enough to see eight owls landing; two Barn Owls, a Bay, Crested, Snowy, Northern Hawk, White-Faced, and Spotted, all wearing strange masks. The Barns, Snowy and Spotted Owls seemed to be the lower ranks because their masks were just plain. The White-Faced, Bay, and Crested Owls had engravings in their masks, battle claws, and… swords? <em>Those haven't been used in awhile…<em> The Northern Hawk look like the leader because his mask had the more and the most detailed engravings, along with a pair of battle claws, two swords on his back, and… Metal wings?

The Northern Hawk scanned the area before nodding in approval. "Good, she's not here at the moment." His voice a deep and dark, but was gentle. He turned his head to the Crested and Bay. "Alcrus and Reiden, go keep lookout. If you see anything do not attack, but get back to here and tell us."

The two owls named Alcrus and Reiden nodded and flew out of the Palace in different directions. Next, he turned to the White-Faced. "Alterran, I need you to search for any signs of movement in here."

"Understood, brother." He nodded as well and flew to the ceiling.

"Alright, the rest of you, follow me." The Northern Hawk said. The four owls followed the Northern Hawk as they passed several different interesting objects.

"What is all of this?" The Spotted, who looked young, asked as he inspected Bess's globe. The Northern Hawk stopped and turned back to him.

"That is a globe- a small model of Earth. The Humans made it after finding a way to go into space and made a smaller model of it. The area that we are in is not shown, however. I'm afraid we haven't much time, so we need to get what we came for." He answered as he continued walking. The Spotted nodded and caught up with them. They kept walking until they stopped in front of a large rectangular crate. It was metal, and had a black and white pattern on it. In fact, it was about twice as tall as a Great Grey!

"Alright, this is it." The Northern Hawk said, walking up to it. "Stand back; I don't want anyone to get hurt."

_There's no way he can open it! I've spent my entire time here trying to figure out a way to open that! _Thought Bess doubtfully. He sighed as he walked towards it.

"Let's see here… If I remember this is one of the strongest crates designed. I don't have a key for it, so the only option is to pick the lock…" He pulled out a sword and stuck it down the hole in the middle of it. And to Bess's surprised, there was a click. He removed his sword as a straight crack appeared and the top began to flip over, as if connected to something. When it finished, the owl flew up on it and pulled out a strangely shaped object. "Pft, they locked the key in here… That's sad."

He sighed and put the "key" in a bag attached to his leg. He reached into the large crate and pulled out an L-shaped black object. The other four owls gasped.

"Zarko, is that a gun?" The Snowy asked the Northern hawk named Zarko. He smirked.

"Alterran showed you, am I right? I don't blame him; you had to know sometime…" He put it on the side of the crate and looked in once again. "Oh-ho-ho… Now that oughta do some damage!"

Zarko jump in, and began flying with his talons wrapped around something. To everyone's shock, he was carrying a very, _very _large object. It was over three times his size, and it had six long tubes at one end. He struggled to carry it and eventually got it next to the "gun", as they called it.

"What in Glaux name is _THAT_?" One of the Barn Owls asked. Zarko smiled and looked down at him.

"That, is what would be called a mini-gun."

"I don't see anything "mini" about it!"

"Oh, I know… But then again, I'm not the one who gave it its name." He flew back in and continued to bring different types of weapons out. After about a minute or two, he'd gotten about ten different things out and he was panting on top of the pile.

"Where in Hagsmire did all of this come from?" The Snowy churred. Zarko smiled through his pants.

"Hag if… I know…"

Bess was shocked at what she was seeing; all of THAT sitting where'd she'd been for the past years! Zarko flew back up to the crate and landed on the edge. "Alright, let's see what this last one is…"

He looked in, and for some reason, froze up like a statue. They were all very silent for a moment until the Spotted Owl spoke up.

"Um… Zarko? Are you okay?"

He didn't reply, but only continued to look down at whatever was in there and cursed under his breath,

"Sprink of frinkin' sprink…"

Bess wilfed at the foul language, but was still undetected. Alterran flew down from his perch and landed at his side.

"Zarko? What's…" He trailed off as now he looked down with wide eyes. "Oh, _frink_…"

"… Alt, go get Alcrus and Reiden… _now_…" Without hesitation, he nodded and flew out of the Palace of Mist at lightning speed. Zarko continued to stare downwards.

"Seriously, what is it?" The Snowy asked, now worried.

Zarko didn't say anything, but flew down, and carefully came back up with a large cylinder in his talons. He landed in front of them as he continued to stare down at it.

"What _is _that?" The first barn muttered.

Zarko swallowed, and nervously said...

"A Nuke."

* * *

><p><strong>GOTCHA! Now isn't <strong>_**that **_**a heck of a cliffhanger? And it's a small nuke, but it's future tech, so let's just say that it's small but still has the same explosion…**

**HOLY CRAP! My uncle is a cop living in Texas, and two nights ago, (July 2, 2012) there was reports of a "disturbance" somewhere. When they got there, they heard a woman scream. They went into the backyard and there were two men transporting guns from one house to another. One was carrying an M16 and had the chance to shoot him, but all the rest I know is that he didn't get shot… When they got inside… OMFG. He sent a picture to us and on a table was an M16 with a scope, a SAW LMG, a sniper rifle, and several other pistols! Surprisingly, all of them were military. My comment was, "Either someone is ex-army, or was planning a heck of a robbery!" I'm glad my uncle is safe, considering I have three cousins…**

**Next, if you're a fan of the movie LotG: OoG'H (The movie following the first three books), then you'll be happy to know that they're considering making a number two!**

**On another note, Shard requested that I do some more of those **_**games **_**like I did to have you find out what Arctus name was (Which is obviously "Arctus"). So I guess I could do one… Find out what Valcia's plan is! ****HINT:**** It has something to do with other kingdoms. (Sorry if that's not good enough)**

**Lastly, my update rate MIGHT go down because I'm helping a friend of mine (Erzaler Kael) with an RP site he's making.**

**Crazybird101- Hm, not a bad idea! I'll think about that! And I'm glad the romance isn't bad XD**

**And of course… HAPPY 4****th**** OF JULY! (Strange, considering the cliffhanger I just left…)**


	21. Chapter 21

"… A what?" Kludd asked, confused. Zarko slowly looked at him.

"One of the deadliest things ever designed. This thing, is extremely fragile; drop it, and it'll explode. The question is, 'how big'? I know the answer… but let's just say that it could probably make Shadow Forest look like a burnt version of the Barrens…"

This sent chills up all of their spines. Zarko looked down at the object in his talons.

"What do we do with it?" Thora asked.

"Keep it." Zarko said simply. "We cannot hide this anywhere. Otherwise, something could stumble across it and trigger it to explode. Everything within 1.7 miles will be dead in the matter of seconds. The best place to hide something, is where it doesn't exist…"

"And _how _exactly do we do that?" Now it was Claymore who asked. Zarko smirked.

"Tell me… Does anybody know where our island is?"

"No." They all said at the same time.

"Therefore, it doesn't exist to them."

Just then, his three brothers flew in. "We heard what you found. What are we to do about this?"

"Well, Alcrus, we're going to take it with us." Zarko answered.

"What! What could you possibly plan to do with it!" Reiden exclaimed. Zarko glared at him.

"You'll see." Zarko said as he carefully lowered it back inside. "Now, we need to get this out of here as quick as possible."

"I wouldn't think so."

They all turned and saw an owl standing at the entrance to the Palace. "Give me the Ember, before I have to hurt you."

They all looked at him strangely… all except for Zarko, who approached him. "How do _you _know the Ember is here?"

"That is none of your concern. I don't know where that frinking Boreal Owl is, but I don't care. I'm going to take the Ember, and then I'll be on my way."

"You're a bigger fool than I expected." Zarko said as he stared down the owl. "What makes you even think that you can just fly in here and take the very Ember of Ga'Hoole?"

"Again, that is none of your concern."

"Well, this is none of your concern either, but we came here not for the Ember, but something much more dangerous."

"And I should care, why?"

"Because if you want to live, then you'll fly out of here and forget that this place even existed. I'm giving you a chance to live. Right now, you can either fly out of here and live a great life, or act like you're tough and get yourself killed because of stupidity."

The owl charged him out of anger, battle claws extended, but Zarko just merely stepped to the side. He landed and turned back to him. Zarko churred.

"Hmph, pathetic. I'll try to make this quick."

The owl charged him once more and Zarko drew a sword and held it out to him. He tried to stop, but failed as he flew into it, and the end came out through the other side of his gizzard. The owl tried to breath, but couldn't as his lights had faded away. Zarko slowly pulled the sword out of him and his body fell to the ground.

"Rest in peace…" He whispered, sheathing his sword. He turned back to the other seven owls. "Get everything back inside of the crate; we're leaving."

He flew over to the pile of weapons he'd pulled out and grabbed the mini-gun. Alterran flew over to him and got a hold of one of the six barrels. They put it in, followed by Alcrus carrying an M16 into it, Reiden carried in some strange rectangle-shaped object carefully, and Clay, Kludd, Thora and Uglamore all carried in the pistols since they weren't strong enough to carry anything else.

"Alright, that should be good." Zarko said, locking the crate. "Pick it up- all of you; gonna need a lot of strength to carry it."

"What do we do about the body?" Alcrus asked as they got a hold of the sides and began to slowly lift it into the air.

"Leave that to me. Go on; I'll catch up." Zarko answered. Thora and Uglamore gave him a confused look but flew out slowly with the crate. Zarko stood at the entrance and watched as they flew away. When they got out of view, he sighed. "I know you're there, Bess."

Bess was surprised that he knew that she was there. Since there was no use in hiding, she flew out of the closet and landed some ways behind him. "How did you know I was here?"

"I've known you were there ever since I set foot in this place." He answered without turning around. "I understand that you have a lot of questions, like 'Who am you?' 'What are you doing here?' Who was that owl?' 'Who are the humans?' 'What about that crate?' 'What are guns?' 'What exactly does that 'Nuke' do?' I can tell you that the humans are what you call the 'Others', but that's it; anything else, I cannot explain. But there is something you can do for me…"

"What is it?" She asked cautiously. Zarko slightly turned his head.

"The Great Tree of Ga'Hoole Tree needs to know that this owl had come looking for the Ember. I know that you haven't left the Palace of Mists in a very long time, but too much is at stake here. Mention us at your own will, but if so, only tell Coryn and the rest of the Band and leave the rest up to them, unless they tell you otherwise."

"Why should I trust you?" Bess asked once again. "How do I know you won't just wait for me to leave so you can grab the Ember?"

"Hm, smart girl… but I am afraid that I'm not after the Ember, for it is nothing of value to me. All it is, is an ancient relic used to make history. Had I intended to take it, I would've been long gone, and you would've been dead. And if you mention me to the Parliament, make sure you tell Soren my name." Zarko turned until he could completely face her. "Your father, Grimble, was a good and brave owl. If it weren't for him, we wouldn't have a chance against the Pure Ones."

"What? How do you know about my father!"

"I just opened a crate you've been trying to open for a long time, showed you weapons you never could have possibly imagined, and yet you ask me how I know about him?" Zarko seemed like he'd expected it, but was still calm. "Glaux himself is grateful for his heroic sacrifice. He rests forever in Glamoura, and now knows peace forever."

Bess was left silent as she just stared at him. The torches and candles she had around the Palace of Mists were out of lighting reach of him, and since his back was to the entrance the moonlight was shining on it, making the side facing her completely black. Zarko eventually sighed.

"Do what you wish with the body; search for answers, salvage what you need, it's up to you. All that matters to me, is that you tell the Great Tree about the owl coming here." He said, taking off.

"Wait! " Bess called after him. He looked down, but only his fierce orange eyes were visible. "Who _exactly _are you?"

Zarko looked down silently, until he answered,

"A Servant of Glaux, a Harbinger of Peace, a Reverend of the Light, and a Bringer of Death."

* * *

><p>"Put it down there!" Zarko directed as they struggled to carry the large crate.<p>

"That's… what I've been waiting to hear… for the past… several miles…" Alcrus breathed as they were a few seconds away from putting it down. They got a few feet above the point to put it down when they all -except of Zarko- let go, causing Zarko to fall as he still held on to the crate. When they hit the ground, he was alright but looked up.

"Careful! That Nuke goes off, and this island won't even exist anymore!" He warned. They all went wide-eyed but nodded; they'd forgotten the dangers of what it held! He sighed and looked down on the crate. "I'm going to need some time alone with this, so I want you all to get some rest; do what you wish until I get this all working."

His brothers only nodded once again and took off without questions or hesitation, while the rest hesitated. Clay looked around before taking off, followed by Uglamore. Kludd seemed to be lost and thought, but came back to reality and took off as well. Zarko began to slowly fly the crate along the ground to somewhere. Thora, still being there, helped by doing the same.

"Hey, Zarko." She said, noticing that since she was helping it was moving faster. "Just thought you could use a talon."

"Takk, Thora." He thanked in Krakish as they pulled. "It's not easy pulling a half-ton crate as an owl..."

"No problem." Thora nodded. "Also thought that I could ask a few questions…"

"Alright, I'm not stopping you."

"Have you notice Kludd acting a little… _off_, lately?"

Zarko seemed to slightly lose his grip as the crate slipped a little and his altitude lowered an inch as well, but he quickly regained it all. "What makes you say that?"

"I mean… Whenever I see him, he seems to get… nervous. I don't know what it is though."

"Any ideas why?" He asked, listening closely to make sure he didn't misunderstand or not hear anything.

"Hm… No, none at all." She hummed.

"Name a few times when this has happened." Zarko told her.

"I noticed it first in the Crack, when he and Clay rescued me, Alcrus and Uglamore. We got caught up staring at each other, and when Alcrus asked him a question, he just stared stuttering. Also noticed it the morning before you came; I couldn't sleep, so I came to see what Kludd was up to. He was awake, asked what I was doing there, and I told him. I figured that he'd need to sleep, so I told him I was going to go out and hunt. He told me to wait, told me that he was just out hunting and asked if I wanted the rest of his vole."

"And he sounded nervous?"

"Yes. I came in and started eating, and I noticed him flinch a little, so I asked him what was wrong. I wanted to ask why he was always so nervous, but decided to keep it to myself. He said that he'd been wondering about how everyone in the world thought of him, and how they all thought him as a killer and that even his parents were glad he was dead. I told him that they didn't know that you were not to blame, and that you were trying everything you could to fix it all."

"Aye, that explains why he asked me about that the next morning." He said to himself. "Please, continue."

"Continuing from where I left off, I noticed that it'd started raining and I was too tired to fly back, so I asked Kludd if I could stay there for the day. He told me he could, but he sounded unsure. A few moments after, I felt a little cold so asked if I could sleep next to him. He was hesitant, but told me I could. And then, I fell asleep."

Zarko was silent for a few moments, before speaking up again.

"Why don't you ask him about it? Or you could ask Clay, Uglamore or one of my brothers."

"Well, I… I don't what to intrude his personal space or anything…"

"That's why I suggested that you could ask somebody else."

"What would make you think they know?" Thora asked, but then realized something. "You all know, don't you?"

Zarko churred. "How'd you figure out?"

"If anyone knew something like that, you'd know it!"

"Well, I'm afraid it is a little personal, but it does involve you. It wouldn't be rude to pressure him a little on this, because it's hard to let out- a now-or-never decision." He looked ahead and noticed something. "There's our destination."

Thora looked ahead too and saw a cave big enough to fit a family of lions, but it had a variety of large tools she'd never seen before. "What's in there?"

"Everything I need to recreate the contents of this crate." He answered as they set it down right outside the cave. "I don't mean to push you away, but I'll need to be alone to work on this."

"Alright then." She said as she was about to take off, but turned back to him instead. "Can I ask you one more question?"

"Yes, you may."

"…What is the closes you've ever come to death as a human?"

Zarko immediately froze up, as if he was remembering something.

_Flashback…_

'CRACK!_'_

_Zarko stopped as he looked down at his chest. There was a large bullet hole, leaking more and more blood with every second. He looked up at the incoming soldiers, firing their weapons as they charged him._

'CRACK CRACK CRACK!'

_Two more went into his left shoulder, and another in his stomach. He dropped his M16, dropped to his knees, and looked up at them once again as all of the bullets flew past him._

"_ZARKO!" He heard a yell. Zarko fell back on the hot desert ground and looked up at the clear blue sky, his vision making it mix with red, and many sand particles flying over him. A soldier he recognized as Alterran grabbed his backpack and began dragging him. "Alrcus, cover the left side! Reiden, get the right!"_

_He continued to look at the many enemy soldiers running towards them at full speed, many falling as his bullets entered their bodies. A grenade exploded a few feet in front of him, causing the sand to fly up and block his vision. One of them charged through it, and he heard Alterran's M9 click. With quick reflexes not failing, Zarko pulled his Desert Eagle and a loud metallic_ crack _filled his ears as a hole was now between the soldier's head. More and more got close, running along the red sand- stained with his blood. He continued to fire his Desert Eagle, slowly as his fading strength made the recoil more intense._

_Zarko was now hearing the propellers of a Blackhawk above him, meaning that their extraction was here. He looked back and saw the mounted mini-guns loading led into all of the soldiers. Looking back in front of him, he saw one with an RPG-7 run up on a sand dune to his left. He quickly reacted by aiming his sidearm at him, and pulling the trigger…_

'Click!'

_His eyes widened in horror. He threw the Desert Eagle to the side and reached out to his back, and pulled a large combat knife out. The distance between him and the RPG was about a good twenty to thirty feet, making the chances of a hit thin. No matter, he threw it, and seconds past until it entered straight through the chest. The soldier began to fall, lifeless as his finger pulled down the trigger. The rocket was aimed towards him, and it was approaching quickly. Seeing that he was passing a body, he quickly pick the dead body's AK-47 up and fired it blindly in the direction of the rocket. A large explosion filled the air in front of him, and he blacked out._

_When he regained consciousness, he felt his back being pushed down on metal, meaning he was in the helicopter. They began to take off as he stared out at the empty desert full of enemy soldiers, and a large airbase in flames…_

_End of Flashback…_

"I… I can't remember." He lied, looking back at Thora. "But right now, go ahead and do what you need to during this point of your freedom."

She was hesitant, but flew off. Zarko, left alone, looked back down at the box and opened it with the key.

* * *

><p><strong>Crazybird101 &amp; Shard. Alba- Glad to see that everything is most likely settled now, and I in fact do consider you as friends.<strong>

**Crazybird101- Well, I got the idea randomly, to tell you the truth; I just think of randomness XD**

**Shard. Alba- Hm, I haven't really thought of when Kludd was going to tell her, but it's a work-in-progress.**


	22. Chapter 22

_**Soooo**_**, very, very sorry that this chapter is late. I've been busy on a boat seeing dolphins, touching crabs, walking along the shore of an empty island, looking around in an aquarium, sprinting through the Charleston Town Market, weaving baskets, canoeing down a river for over five miles in four hours so now my shins are tanner than my upper legs. Not only that, but I've been having a few personal… "difficulties". Well, without further ado, here's chapter 22!**

* * *

><p>"What?" Soren exclaimed at what Bess had just explained. "An owl came looking for the Ember?"<p>

"Yes." She answered. Soren turned back to Coryn.

"First Gwendor shows up about the Dire Wolves in the Beyond, then an intelligent Puffin comes and says that he heard Nyra and the Striga, and now someone has attempted to take the Ember of Ga'Hoole?" Coryn muttered to himself.

"An intelligent Puffin?" Bess blurted out, dumbstruck. "Since when are Puffins smart?"

"Since this one showed up." Gylfie answered, looking over at Dumpy who was alone at the other side of the hollow. Digger looked at Bess and saw something her face was describing.

"There's more, isn't there?" He asked. Everyone glanced at him in confusion before staring at a shocked Bess.

"Well, there is actually, and it shocked me more than the owl coming for the Ember…"

"Well, what is it then?" Twilight asked impatiently. She hesitated to answer.

"A few minutes before the owl came in… I'd heard several wing beats from outside the Palace. I hid in a closet and watched them. Eight owls came in; two Barn, a Bay, Crested, Spotted, Snowy, Northern Hawk and White Faced- all wearing strange masks." Bess explained, making them gasp.

"Them again…" Coryn whispered.

"Now the Palace of Mists?" Digger said.

"Wait, you mean you know them?" She asked, confused.

"Yes, we do, in fact." Soren answered, silencing the others so he could now explain. "They've been a complete mystery to us; first, five of them raided a Pure One encampment in Ambala. They left a letter there, telling us to go there, and we did. I was knocked out for some unknown reason, and Coryn's Firesight acted up, as did my Starsight. We both saw the same thing, but Coryn could actually hear it. We saw what happened to the Pure Ones there, and there we were both in some sort of… place. That Northern Hawk was there, but he was pitch black and we couldn't see anything but his shape. After words, we were back in the hollow we'd been in."

"That's who they are?"

"There's more; they've also came in the Great Tree unnoticed and seven of them pretty much massacred about twenty Pure Ones that were attempting to steal the Ember of Ga'Hoole on their own, and got away. Next, they'd shown up in our trip to the Middle Kingdom, and took down about half of the Pure One's Slink Melf team, and left when Tengshu came. Lastly, they burned a hollow of Pure Ones in the Barrens. Then my Starsight and Coryn's Firesight acted up again, and we both saw what happened in that hollow; that Northern Hawk was _interrogating _and _torturing _one of them, asking where a 'prisoner' was. Eventually he told him that it was in Kiel Bay, and he left a burning coal to burn the tree down. We set out for Kiel Bay, and we ran into them at the same time they were attacking the Pure Ones, but a raid of Kraals showed up and took us all prisoner in the Crack. We escaped because the Bay and White-Faced named Reiden and Alterran showed up and led us to the Great Tree. They didn't explain much, but they eventually left us when we got here. That was the last we'd ever heard of them." Soren finished. Bess was silent for a few moments.

"Ahem…" Gylfie said, grabbing they're attention. "Can you continue now, Bess?"

"Well, the Northern Hawk told Reiden and the Crested Owl named Alcrus to keep watch outside, and Alterran to watch them from the ceiling of the Palace. The Northern Hawk somehow opened a very large crate that I'd been attempting to open for years, and he pulled out some strange objects. One of them asked if it was something called a 'gun'. He pulled out many more until he seemed to freeze up when he got to the last thing in there. He told Alterran to get Alcrus and Reiden from outside, and then he pulled it out of the crate."

At this point, the band members seemed like they were listening very closely, considering that it had to be bad if _he _was freezing up.

"It was a small cylinder, with some colored wires coming in and out of it. He said that it was called a 'nuke', and that it was so dangerous that it could make Shadow Forest look like a burnt version of the Barrens. He said that they were going to hide it with them, because where they are is an island that no one knows about, apparently. And then the owl came in, asking for the Ember. The Northern Hawk gave him a chance to leave, but he only attacked him. He killed the owl, and left him there. The other seven took the crate out of there at his command, while he said that he'd take care of the body. When they were gone, he told me to come out; he knew I was there."

"What did he tell you?" Twilight asked. She glared at him, but continued.

"He said that I needed to tell you that the owl had come looking for the Ember, and to mention them at my decision. I asked how I could trust him not to take the Ember, but said that if he'd come for the Ember then we wouldn't of been talking then. After that, he left."

They were all silent at this. Coryn broke it.

"Did you get his name?"

"I… I did, actually. He told me to tell you specifically, Soren." They all glanced at Soren.

"…What is his name?" He asked.

"He said his name was 'Zarko'."

Soren now froze for some reason. "Zarko…"

"You know him?" Twilight blurted out. Soren shook his head.

"No, but I've heard about who he is, but not in a very, very long time. Zarko was-"

"Zarko!" Eglantine interrupted, overhearing what he said. "What's this about Zarko?"

"Eg, you know the ones that have been fighting the Pure Ones without telling us who they are?"

"Yes, what about them?"

"Zarko is the Northern Hawk leading them."

"What?" Now Eglantine was in shock, making the others even more confused. "But how…"

Another "ahem" from Gylfie interrupted them once again. "Can you please explain exactly _who _he is?"

"Oh, right, sorry…" Eglantine apologized, allowing her older brother to continue.

"When Eglantine, Kludd and I were all just hatchlings, our mum and da always told us stories of how they met. They said that mum was being robbed by bandits when two owls came and rescued her. They carried her to da's hollow, and he along with Ms. P helped tend to her. When she was well and resting, the two were a Northern Hawk, and… another owl da couldn't recognize. The Northern Hawk said his name was Zarko, and the other one kept his name to himself. Mum always talked about how heroic they were, taking care of the bandits so easily. It was the only one Kludd ever paid attention to!"

"Wait…" Twilight stopped him. "You mean… this owl set your parents up, and now they're taking care of the Pure Ones like they're nothing?"

"Apparently, but… what I don't understand is… how is he alive?" Soren asked, even though no one knew the answer.

"What do you mean?" Coryn asked, not knowing what he was getting at.

"I mean- surely it can't be him! He was older than my parents at the time they met, so…"

"He should've died of age, by now…" Digger finished for him, wondering about how it could be.

* * *

><p>"Great Glaux, Zarko, where have you been?" Uglamore asked as he entered Zarko's hollow. "It's been three days since we brought that crate here!"<p>

"I've been working on some stuff to help out with the upcoming war with the Pure Ones." He answered simply. "I need to work all I can on it, all before the sides clash."

"So, what is it we're doing this time?" Kludd now asked, noticing that Zarko's brothers were there as well.

"There seems to be an unfortunate little bit of déjà vu here; once again, the Pure Ones have infiltrated the Great Tree." Zarko answered again. This gained a few sighs across the hollow. "I know; we all were expecting them to be a bit more alert from our first visit, but we were wrong. Now, we need to take care of them."

Zarko led them to a map overlooking the entire layout of the Great Tree when Clay asked, "How many are we looking at?"

"About fifteen of them. The five of us will need to once again gain entrance to the Tree and take them out quietly- preferably while they are in their hollow or something. Luckily, you won't need to determine who they are as hard as the last time, for I have identified each one's species. We are looking at three Barn Owls, two Grass, four Masked, one Greater Sooty, and five Lesser. If we're lucky, some might even share hollows. Remember to hide the bodies quickly and carefully when you have… 'Taken care' of them. Oh, Alterran, Alcrus, Reiden; I have a more _important _task for you…" He approached his three brothers and whispered something to them. He whispered it so quietly, that not even Kludd nor Uglamore could hear it with their sensitive ear tufts. Whatever he said, it made them all widen their eyes in shock and surprise.

"…Zarko, I never have doubted you before, and that is a very genius plan, but… are you sure about this?" Alcrus asked. Zarko nodded.

"I know that there is a very, very large risk that it could harm others in a way we won't want it to, but sometimes some must die, so a larger amount won't. I am absolutely sure." Zarko glanced at Alterran. "It's in my cave, northwest of here. I left a map showing where next to it. Be careful now; I don't want you to die in the process of doing this. Alright?"

The three of them seemed to hesitate, until they sighed and said at the same time. "Understood…"

As they flew out of the hollow, Zarko turned back to the other four owls. "Any questions?"

"Well, I suppose that you're not going to tell us what Alterran, Alcrus and Reiden are doing, but what are the _Pure Ones _doing at the Great Tree this time?" Thora asked. Zarko smirked.

"Well, they're spying on their every move so they can tell Nyra what they plan to do and what help they will have. We need to prevent this and keep the Pure Ones from getting the upper talon. Anything else?" No one said anything. "Good, go ready up- we'll be leaving shortly."

They all nodded and flew out of the hollow. Kludd was thinking during his flight to his hollow, _What is it Alterran, Alcrus and Reiden are going to do? And what about Valcia…?_

"Hey, Kludd!" A call snapped him out of his thoughts. Turning his head to his side, Thora was flying right beside him. "Is something wrong?"

"Wha…? No- I don't think so; I was just wondering what it is Zarko's brothers are doing." Kludd said truthfully.

"Oh…" Thora said, looking down. "Well, can I ask you a question?"

"Sure, what is it?" Kludd asked back, glancing at her and back in front of him.

"Well… why is it you're always nervous and stuttering around me? I mean, at the Crack you just answered Alcrus like you were embarrassed… why?" She asked. Kludd blinked and glanced at her once again.

"Um… Well, it's…" He replied, trying to find the words to say. Thora looked at him and realized something.

_Wait, does he…?_ She thought, looking closely at his expressions and emotions.

"…I- I think I should wait to answer that…" Kludd said, looking down. Thora frowned, but didn't press further. "Well, don't we need to get ready, though?"

"You're right. I'll see you later, then…" She said, flying in the other direction.

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry if this chapter seems a bit short, but it will have to do for now. Anyways, please R&amp;R!<strong>

**Shard. Alba- Yes, I understand; it's my fault for not updating and I take full responsibility for that. Well, I hope this keeps you settled for awhile.**


	23. Chapter 23

**I'm back (For now)! Alright, I've **_**finally**_** gotten a moment to get a chapter down, and I hope that this is good enough to settle you, for awhile. Anyways, time for me to crack my knuckles, neck, back, toes, and get started! On with chapter… 23! (I think)**

_**[LINEHERE]**_

A Mid-Eastern soldier stood overhead on a large skyscraper in a huge city in ruins, surrounded by desert and everything. The soldier bent down and looked over the edge, sighing. He set down his AK-47 and sighed, but right as the happened a hand touched his back and pushed him over the edge, making him scream as he fell.

"Quite a drop." The person who pushed him over said. He was wearing a tan military undercoat, an M9 holstered in his right leg, and a M4A1 Assault Rifle with a grenade launcher along with and ACOG Scope, also a sharpened combat knife sheathed across his chest.

"Yeah, no kidding." Another said, this one had a full tan standard-issue military armor with a helmet said. Like the first, he had an M9 strapped to his right leg. His main weapon was a M249 SAW with the regular Iron Sight.

"Just try not to fall over yourself." The third said, looking through the scope of his Barret 50cal. This one also had an M9 strapped to his right leg, with a green beanie.

"Maybe you guys should focus on the fact that we got somewhere to be." The last said. This one had an MP5 with a Red Dot Sight. Like all the others, he had a M9 strapped to his right leg. He wore a pair of sunglasses and a tan army suit.

"Alcrus is right." The first stated. "We need to keep moving. Here's the plan; we'll move in and take the room down from multiple sides. I'll repel down and enter through the window. Alcrus, head down and breach in from the door."

"Yes, sir." Alcrus said, taking the door inside.

"Alterran, go down with him; set charges in a square above the room and detonate once we breach and you'll fall right in. Use your SAW to kill everything you see."

"Got it." Alterran said, following Alcrus.

"Reiden, I need you to stay up here and keep an eye out for anything that comes in view. Get a silencer on and kill anything you see, quietly."

"Understood, Zarko." Reiden nodded, not looking out of his scope.

Zarko nodded and tied a rope around a pipe on top of the building and began to repel down. As he repelled down, however, he heard Reiden say-

"RPG!"

Zarko looked up at his rope and saw the rocket hit it, burning it and causing him to fall…

* * *

><p>Zarko finished pulling the body of the Pure One spy into the hollow quietly. As he set the body down, he look at his face. He was a Sooty Owl, his yellow eyes open staring into nothingness, and his beak left agape. Zarko sighed, closed his eyes for a moment, and closed the Pure One's eyes with his talons, as well as closed his beak. Hearing flapping behind him, Zarko twisted around, sword drawn, and pointed mere centimeters from the neck of the owl who was perched at the entrance of the hollow. Blinking, he quickly sheathed his sword.<p>

"Good grief, you scared me; thought you were another Pure One." Zarko stated. Thora breathed heavily and her eyes wide at how close she had come to having her head separated from her body. Nodding, she said,

"Sorry about that, I didn't mean to. At least now I know never to sneak up on you when in action."

Zarko churred and turned around back to the three dead Pure Ones in the hollow. "No worries; of course you didn't." Thora stepped inside and got to his right and joined him at looking down at the Pure Ones. "Something to report?"

"Indeed; we've scoured out most of the Pure Ones and hid them well. I met up with Clay and he told me to report to you on our status." Thora told him.

"Good, very good." Zarko nodded. "I know we're in the middle of a mission, but I need to talk to you about something…"

"Of course, what is it?"

Zarko looked around and sat across from her. "I don't mean to sound like I'm getting into your private business and all, and I want you to be honest… what's your opinion on Kludd?"

Thora blinked at the question. _Why would Zarko of all owls ask a question like that…?_ She thought. "I see him as a really nice Barn Owl. I enjoy his company; he's really sweet and he's my greatest friend above the others as I see him. I'm sad that he was Shattered and your brother Arctus forced him to create the Pure Ones and make him hated throughout the owl kingdoms. I just grow curious of why sometimes when I'm around him he just… he just started stuttering and seems nervous sometimes, and it's strange to me. Why do you ask all of this?"

Zarko smiled at her and looked down at the floor, sighing. "Well, several reasons, really. You were honest to me and now I'll be honest to you. I've been wondering if I can make everyone believe the truth that Kludd had no control over his actions. Everyone despised him and they still do, even his own _parents_ thought he had no place on Earth! He kicked his brother out of the nest; even though it helped him meet Gylfie, Twilight, Digger and the rest of the Guardians. He vowed to kill his own brother- even if it meant to lose his gizzard. He fought believing that Tytos were the purest of all owls and were Glaux's favorite and that no non-Tytos deserved a place on Earth. If you knew someone who did that and you didn't know the truth behind it all, would you forgive him without physical proof?"

Thora was shocked at this. He was right; if they were going to make everyone realize the truth behind Kludd then they were going to need some sort of proof to support their explanation. "We'll find a way- we have to."

"I promised Kludd that I would." Zarko said. "And I never break a promise."

Thora nodded. "But you said several reasons, so what else is there?'

"Oh, yeah, well… I don't mean to sound sudden and all, but…" Zarko trailed off, looking at the floor. He closed his eyes and sighed again as he looked up at her and said-

"Kludd is in lo-"

"ZARKO!"

The Snowy and Northern Hawk Owls jumped and turned to the entrance where Uglamore was perched, out of breath.

"Great Glaux, Uglamore! I was about to tell Thora about…" Zarko gave him a look and he understood what he meant. Uglamore nodded but said.

"That's great and all, and I'm sorry to interrupt, but we got a _serious_ situation here!"

* * *

><p>Kludd saw the last Pure One in the Great Tree and walked through the crowed of owls. He stared straight in front of him where the Grass Owl was behind the many owls. He wasn't aware of his surroundings, as some owls had been glancing at him. Kludd, however, lost his focus and turned to two other owls walking past in front of him.<p>

Coryn and Soren. Kludd blinked and watched them. _Soren… and that must be Coryn. Why does he look like me…?_

Kludd walked after them, speeding up to get in front of them. He got not too far away from them and Coryn saw Kludd and looked him in the eyes, and Kludd did the same. Soren looked at Coryn, wondering what had caught his attention. He followed his nephew's gaze until he, too, made eye contact with Kludd. Soren's eyes widened in complete horror and shock at this.

"…Kludd?" He said, loud enough for all the owls to hear. This caused all the owls to spread out and form a circle around Kludd on one side, and Coryn and Soren on the other.

"Kludd?!" Coryn yelled, turning to Soren. "You're saying _that_ is my dead father?!"

"…What?!" Kludd muttered. Then, realization hit him.

"Metal Beak lives!"

"We were fooled!"

"What in the name of Glaux is the dead leader of the Pure Ones doing here?"

The yells erupted from the crowd of owls. Kludd was in deep trouble and he knew it.

"Kill him!" A Great Horned Owl charged him, battle claws extended. Kludd stared in horror at him and knew that he was about to die, again.

_Clink!_

Zarko, all of his silvery armor and weapons, landed in front of the Great Horned, parrying with him. The attacker continued striking but Zarko dodged each and every one of them flawlessly and eventually hit him in the face with his battle claws, sending him flying back. He turned to the faces of shocked owls as Clay, Thora and Uglamore landed around Kludd. Zarko landed and eyed the crowed.

"Well… this ain't good." Zarko said bluntly.

"What gave it away?" Thora muttered.

"The fact that we're standing defensively against the owls of Ga'Hoole and trying to keep Kludd from being ripped limb from limb." Uglamore replied.

"Right, of course." Clay nodded.

"Who in Hagsmire are you?" Coryn asked. Zarko decided to answer.

"Well, you've already met us in the Northern Kingdoms. As you know, we're not exactly considered on your side by the Tree since you see Kludd here with us…"

Kludd lowered his head in shame as many eyes stared him down In pure hate.

"That still doesn't answer my question." Coryn said, growing impatient.

Zarko looked around. He noticed someone charging from behind him- there were three, actually. They were Great Grays and he knew who each of them were.

Zarko brought his swords out and parried with Tavis's battle claws, dodged, Twilight's strikes, and brought his foot to Cletus's face and pushed him back like the earlier Great Horned. Hearing wing beats behind him, he turned and grabbed a hold of Tavis's talons and head banged him with his metal mask. He now turned towards Twilight, who was staring him down with shock at first, but then charged him once again. Zarko smirked under his mask. Zarko charged Twilight back, and when the two collided, Zarko flew to the left and grabbed his wing, twisted him around, and tossed him back in the circle. Before he hit the ground head first, Zarko caught him and placed him down gently, patting him.

"Anyone else feel like attacking us?" He asked. No one said anything. "Good…"

"May I explain, as it is my own past?" Kludd asked. Zarko glanced at him and nodded. Stepping forward, Kludd looked dead in the eye at Coryn. "You all know me as Metal Beak, the leader of the Pure Ones who you thought against for so long and preparing to start war. I am not their leader; I never was! I was controlled from even before the day I hatched from my egg in Tyto Forest!"

"Liar!" Many calls came, and owls got closer and looked like they were about to attack.

"This is not going to get us anywhere!" Zarko yelled, pulling out a cylinder looking object with a red tip. "I don't want to hurt any of you, but you're dang well getting close to making us for our own safety! War is coming, and right now all you do is choose to fight us without hearing us out!"

They didn't listen, they all continued roaring in anger. Zarko looked at Soren and Coryn who were staring at him with confused expressions. Zarko sighed in sadness and said loud enough for the two to hear,

"I'm sorry." And he pushed the red tip down.

All of the owls turned their head to an eruption of flames with a death-making explosion. A large branch of the Tree fell off and down unto the island, and fire was left burning a very small section of their home. Many owls screamed, cried, and flew to put the fire out. Chaos let lose.

Soren turned back to the five owls and saw that they were flying off away from the Tree. Zarko glanced at the Grass Owl who was the Pure One spy and said, "Kludd, the spy!"

Kludd nodded and flew down and his talons collided with the Grass Owl's face, dragging his corpse back some as blood ran down his face. Soren chased after them but stopped at the corpse and after inspecting it for a moment, he realized something.

"A Pure One…"

* * *

><p><strong>Yes, I know- it's crappy. I've lost my writing skill over time and it might take some time to restore. I got the beginning flashback from Spec Ops: The Line since I just got done playing the demo. Well, sorry if this didn't settle you. Goodbye for now.<strong>


	24. Chapter 24

**Hey everyone... I know that I said I'm not getting my laptop back, but there is some good news; my school uses Samsung Chromebooks, which are issued to students like me from the day they get into school to the day they graduate, so... I can use the extra time I have to type up chapters! ^.^ Well, the process isn't going to be very fast, but I'll work on it with all the spare time I have.**

**Also, I realized what I'm lacking this story... Personality! I've had Alt, Rei and Al's personalities all the same from time to time, and changing for different characters. I'll try to work on that, but for now I'll try to keep this going and not let that distract me. Anyways, back to chapter... 24! ...It is 24, right? Ah, who cares? I can just go back and edit if I'm wrong. (I actually do know it's 24, just pullin' your leg.)**

* * *

><p>"Great Glaux, this isn't good..." Zarko whispered to himself repeatedly as he paced back and forth in his hallow. Near him was Clay, Thora and Uglamore holding a very pissed Kludd back.<p>

"I have a son?!" Kludd said angrily. "Why the frink wasn't I told about this?!"

"Kludd, calm down..." Claymore whispered, trying ease the situation. "We did it to protect you."

"'Protect' me?" Kludd shot back.

"Yes, Kludd, we were trying to keep you safe." Uglamore nodded, even though he knew it wasn't a friendly line.

"And how exactly was not telling me that my own son, the embered Monarch of Ga'Hoole who despises me, is supposed to be killed at the end of the upcoming war?" Kludd's friends were speechless, and there was an uneasy silence. It wasn't until about twenty seconds later that a voice broke the silence.

'Think for just one, simple bloody moment, Kludd." They all turned to see Zarko's back half-turned to them, his head looking down at the floor. "If I had told you that Coryn was your son and supposed to die, what would you have done? Would you have stayed calm enough to just take a few deep breaths and carry on our mission into preventing that from happening?" Zarko paused and turned to look at Kludd intently past Clay, Thora and Uglamore. He slowly began to take a few steps. "We lied, yes, but sometimes sins must be done righteously. Right and wrong aren't always bluntly in open sight, they're hidden- disguised. I brou... We, brought you back, all of you back, so you may have a chance to redeem yourselves and be known as better owls, and live with family. Imagine if there is a Glamoura, and you look back and realize that you have too much left to do on Earth. Could you live peacefully in death knowing that you were not yet done in the land of the living?"

Everyone was silent and staring at Zarko in thought; his words had meaning, even though it went a little off topic, but it was still senseful. Zarko had stopped walking when he was mere inches (About 3 feet if they were human size) away from the four.

"I want you to get some rest for the day; it's been a long night. I'll call you back to my hollow once we are ready for our next task in the coming days. But first, I'd like to talk to Thora and Uglamore."

Clay and Kludd flew out of the hollow away from them, leaving the other Barn Owl and Snowy with Zarko.

"What is it, sir?" Uglamore asked respectfully.

"You don't have to call me that Uglamore- not here. On the battlefield I may be a leader, but as of now I am only an owl." Zarko told him. Both of the owls nodded.

"Is there something wrong?" Thora asked curiously. Zarko shook his head.

"Well, that depends on what you mean by 'wrong.' Due to obvious recent events, the Guardians are now aware that we are watching them- but they don't know who we are. Spying won't be easy anymore, especially since they have our faces and voices. But a rather interesting connection has come to my attention..." Zarko walked to the back of the hellow to put away his battle claws he still had equipped from earlier. He turned back to the two. "Both of you have some connections- Uglamore is a former comrade of Doc Finbeak, and Thora as the sister of Madam Plonk. As it turns out, these two are now mates together."

"What are you suggesting?" Thora perked up from the mention of her sister.

"They both trust you and would be shocked to know about your survival. If you were to show up to them, they might actually trust us and spy on their own allies for us after hearing us out." Zarko explained. They both blinked in surprise.

"So," Uglamore started, "You think that we could get them to trust us because we're their resurrected friends and family and give us information on the moves of their own faction?"

Zarko hummed then slightly nodded. "I guess that's a way to put it."

* * *

><p>"How's the situation with Thora going?" Clay asked Kludd, flying side-by-side. Kludd shrugged.<p>

"Hag if I know," He glanced around. "I'm beginning to understand the way I feel for her, but I don't know if it would work out between the two of us. What do you make of it?"

"I believe you might have a chance." Clay smiled. "I won't lie, Kludd; you're a good owl. You're like a second brother to me, and you always make me stronger. I feel that Zarko really did bring us back for reasons more than just saving the world from his own brother- you and I are now best of friends, you and Thora might be together, Uglamore might redeem himself and save Coryn once again..."

"Coryn is really my son, huh?" Kludd asked, still having a hard time taking it in, but was calmer now.

"I was just as surprised as you are." Clay reassured. "I had a hard time believing it and realized that there were huge risks that Zarko is taking for not only us, but himself as well."

"It's a tough and interesting life, but it's for the best." Kludd agreed. "Speaking of Zarko, what do you think of Valcia?"

"She's pretty nice, I like her. I wasn't expecting Zarko's mate to be a different species, nor was I expecting him to have one at all." The Spotted Owl laughed. "While you may seem like a brother to me, Zarko is almost like a father in some ways. This time with you, Thora, Uglamore, Zarko and even his brothers has been the greatest thing that has ever happened to me." Clay was lost in thought as they landed inside Kludd's hollow and turned to him again. "Do you think that everything is worth it? Killing the Pure Ones to prevent such destruction?"

"I can certainly understand Zarko's logic. Gotta spill some blood so more won't splatter in the future. It does haunt me, having their lives slip away from the attacks of my talons, or the slashing of my battle claws, but I just come to accept it and continue doing what work I need to do." Kludd walked with Clay around the hollow as they talked. "It's not easy taking a life, but it's something you have to do for survival as part of life. You know that feeling, don't you?"

"Indeed I do." Clay churred. "It's not like we haven't been doing the same thing together for the past... Great Glaux, I don't even know how long it's been since we met Zarko."

"Strange, neither do I..." Kludd blinked. "Time has just been passing alone and it's not something we realized. We've just been living our lives as it goes without counting the days."

"Time will soon come along."

Clay and Kludd both jumped and looked at the entrance to see Alterran standing there, watching them.

"What do you mean?" Kludd asked, confused. Alterran walked in and continued,

"We haven't been realizing time because it isn't our war, nor is it even a war at all. This is just a simple conflict, but right now time is counting down to war. Once war hits, you'll remember every event that happens." Alterran nodded. "And considering what Zarko had us do, it certainly is coming."

"What did you three do anyways?" Clay asked curiously. Alterran shook his head.

"It's probably best if we don't tell you, but I can tell you that you'll see soon enough." Was all he said. "I heard about what happened at the Tree. Don't worry about your outburst, Kludd; it's normal for someone to react that way to such a thing."

"I know... I think I almost got it wrapped around my head." He replied. "I can understand now what Zarko was trying to do."

"Zarko may be a great leader, but he has his down-sides." Alterran noted.

"He does?" Clay looked at Alterran. Alterran nodded.

"He, too, has rage inside of him. There's a darkness inside of him, and sometimes when too much rage consumes him, he's unstoppable. It's hard to debate whether this is a good thing or bad. When it happens with us, it's crazy. But in the battlefield? Great Glaux... he's insane. I've seen him kill an entire legion of enemies on his own. Pain can't stop him."

"I knew Zarko was a little evil-looking, but I never knew he had an actual evil side." Clay admitted

"Aye. Zarko is smart and does a few evil things for what is right. He shows hatred towards his enemies, and respect and comfort with his allies. Back in the old days the four of us used to have fun during action, laughing and smiling towards each other. Things have changed a lot since those days." Alterran looked down slightly with a low and soft smile. "I hope that through all of this you can get the same fun with each other."

The two other owls smiled back and nodded. Clay glanced over at Kludd and noted, "Well, the sun's up, so I should probably go get some sleep. I'll see you tonight, Kludd."

Clay flew out of the hollow and off to his own, and Alterran looked back at Kludd and smiled again. "I hope we all live a happy life as a family in the end." And he flew out as well.

* * *

><p>Soren didn't know what to think. His mind was in a state of shock, almost as if he was yeep while on ground. Kludd, his very own brother, the one who had vowed to kill him, the one who led the Pure Ones, the one who was killed by Twilight, was alive. All that echoed through Soren's mind as he looked at the ground was-<strong><br>**  
><em>My brother is alive... but how?<em>

Soren was in his hollow alone, staring at the ground. The mid-aged Barn Owl had no idea how he felt, nor how he should have felt. Happy? Angry? Relieved? Kludd was back- was he "back"? Or had he never even been killed? Was he still the same old Kludd that lusted for the Tytos to rule? And who were those other owls? Soren figured that the leader who fought back against Twilight, Cletus and Tavis alone without a mark was the leader... that was Zarko? He had been nothing like he had expected. But who were the other owls that were with them? What of the one they killed on the way out? And were there more? So many question raced through Soren's head, but his head snapped in a 175 degree angle to see Coryn entering to see his uncle.

"Uncle Soren?"

"Coryn...?"

"I thought my father had been killed..." He said softly, approaching the older Barn Owl.

"So had I..." Soren replied, "I had seen him killed right in front of me, his blood leaking away from him. And you had seen his very own bones being burned. This doesn't make any sense..."

"Actually, there's more." Coryn said, making him blink.

"'More'?"

"I recognized another one of the owls that was with Zarko and my father." He continued. "The other Barn Owl was a Pure One lieutenant named Uglamore, and I often refered to him as my uncle."

"Wait, now..." Soren stopped him, confused. "So they're working for the Pure Ones really?"

"Not exactly... if you'll let me continue, after I had left the Pure Ones I had heard of there being a traitor within the Pure Ones. I figured it had been Uglamore, and when at the Beyond, right after I had grabbed the Ember, Nyra had attacked me, and Uglamore was there to stop her. A sick wolf had attempted to bite at me, and Uglamore had sacrificed himself by putting himself in front of me to take the bite, and he died bleeding from the sickness mere minutes later, and we had burned his remains."

Soren paused and took a moment to register this. "So... Kludd is not the only one who isn't dead?"

"It was Uglamore- and he was dead as well." Coryn explained simply.

"Soren? Your majesty?" A voice came from outside. The two relatives turned back to see Martin there, watching them. "I have news regarding the recent break-in."

"What is it?" Soren asked the Northern Saw-whet.  
>Martin wilfed his feathers before continuing, "We haven't found out much, but we were taking a look at the body of the owl they had killed on their way out, as well as others found in their hallows. I noted something about them when I looked... they were all Tytos, and I found this on one of them."<p>

Martin held out a letter to Soren and the Barn Owl took it and began to read.

"Soldiers,

You are to find out any and all information about the Guardians and their plans for war. We must know the enemy if we wish to defeat them. Make sure you aren't discovered, and don't do anything stupid. Those of you who bring me the most and best information shall be promoted under my order.

Do not fail me,  
>Nyra."<p>

Soren looked up at Martin with wide eyes. "They were tracking down Pure Ones..." Soren glanced over at his nephew and saw that he was thinking the same thing.

"We were infiltrated and had slipgizzles all over us, until they came in and killed them." Martin confirmed. "I must be off, your majesty."

With that, Martin flew off, and the two looked at each other. "I still have some suspicions..." Coryn mumbled.

"I do as well. What is on your mind?"

"How would they know that they had gotten in here, and how would they know who they were? How do we know that this just isn't a trick to make us trust them, when they could really be working for the Pure Ones?" The young king protested. Soren blinked and thought about it. It was a possibility, but he wasn't 100% sure about it.

"We'll have to put this aside for now." Soren told him. "Right now, we need to focus on the main enemy."

"You're right." Coryn agreed.

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry if you find any major errors: I had to copy 'n paste and it didn't do it for Bold and Italic fonts. Anyways, hope you enjoyed this!<strong>


	25. Chapter 25

**Hey everybody! Airman here! Sorry it took so long to update *Cough* *Cough* again. I was working on a birthday present for a great friend of mine, Starlightmaker17 (Also called LMV2003) and the short story turned out being a little over 5,400 words, a little more than I had expected to get it done but I'm proud of it nevertheless since she like it, even though there's barely anyone who has read it. I started working on it the second I finished the last chapter, and while I was working on this, I had a week long Spring Break, but now I got that out of the way, so I'll continue to work on this for now.**

* * *

><p>"Reiden?"<p>

"Yeah, Al?" Reiden responded, observing the fires of the volcanos from afar, next to Clay.

"Do you remember this place feeling so... good?" Alcrus asked, making his brother blink.

"What do you mean?" Reiden said in a bewildered tone.

"I mean... we've been here before, but it seems different than last time. The temperature is so warm, the indescribably soft winds blowing against your feathers, the sight of the ring of volcanoes lighting up to night... I don't know, it's just so nice. It makes me upset that the war would have to take place here." Alcrus explained. "I just love this place. I don't want it to be ruined."

"And that's a reason we have to fight." Reiden nodded. "It's for peaceful places like this that we fight for, so it won't be changed. Well, it may be changed, but it won't be negatively."

Clay was listening to their conversation the whole time while he watched out around the Beyond. Zarko had sent the three of them out there to keep an eye out for any Pure One activity, and let him know the moment they see any sign of them setting up bases or preparing for war. They knew that they intended for a war, most definitely, but they still needed to know what they were up against.

The young owl had to admit, Alcrus was right. It _did_ feel good, with every detail that he described and didn't. Clay felt that he could stay here forever if he could! "We'll make sure that this place remains unscared. I can't agree more with you two on this, I love this place, too. If I die during the fight, then at least it'll be here."

Alcrus and Reiden were looking over at Clay then over at each other, as if there was something Clay didn't know. "Hm..."

"Wha...?" Clay noticed this and looked over at them with confusion. "What's wrong?"

"...Nothing, Clay." Alcrus finally said. "It's nothing important, Reiden and I were just thinking the same thing."

Clay nodded in understanding and turned to look back out at the volcanos of the Beyond. "Mind if I ask you two a question?"

"Of course!" They both said at the same time. Clay took a few seconds to gather his words as he stared out at the beautiful sight of the volcanoes.

"What happened to Zarko? He's scarred, weathered, and yet he still stands through all of it. Something must have happened to get him this way. He shows no pain, he has a certain use of words. I just want to know what caused him to change."

Both of the brothers were silent, unsure of how to answer. Finally, Reiden let out a sigh and began slowly.

"It happened happened eons ago, back when we were humans..."

"_Get up, Rei! We gotta move!"_

"I remember it so well... We were at a place we had called home, where we resided when we had rest from work."

"_Where's Zarko and Alcrus?!"_

"We were being attacked out of nowhere... hundreds of them were attacking us with as much as they could."

"_Alcrus is up ahead holding them off, we don't know where Zarko is."_

"We were seperated, we weren't together when they first attacked."

"_What's the situation, Al?"_

"_There's a pocket-full of them, I've lost count of how many bullets I've wasted on them."_

"_We need to find Zarko and get out of here, the whole valley is collapsing from the bombs they're sending."_

"They intended to kill and bury us in our own home. Arctus didn't care how many he lost, he sent them all in to us to get those who could stop him out of the way."

"_Up ahead! I think I see him!"_

"_Zarko! Good god, are you alright?!"_

"We found Zarko about five minutes later, but not how we expected. He had been fighting alone against them, his skin was burned, bullet holes and blade cuts covered his body. There was even a knife in his leg, plunged deep into the bone, and an axe nearly tearing his full left arm off stuck in him, yet his was still fighting. No matter what they sent, he had killed them. There was at least a battalion of them, half dead, half alive. I don't know how Zarko survived."

"_Rei, get Zarko out of here, we'll cover you. Alcrus, cover the rear!"_

"_They're cutting us off from in front!"_

"His strength was fading, he was barely alive. They were swarming us like a pack of wolves wanting to get the first bite of an elk tied to the ground. While I was carrying Zarko, he kept muttering and whispering words that I couldn't understand in anger. He was mad. Really, _really_ mad. We wouldn't have gotten out, honestly..."

"_Zarko! Save your energy, we can't lose you, brother!"_

"...If Zarko hadn't continued to fight them in his condition."

"_No. I won't let a single one of them live. I'll die before I let them do this and get away with it."_

"We got out and we watched back as our own home erupted in flames. It burned on and on, and all we could do is just sit there and watch. He used weapons of mass destruction beyond the owl knowledge. That day, Zarko looked back and swore to himself-"

"'Never while evil is in throne shall I rest. I'll fight til my last breath, so others will not have to suffer what I have today. I long for peace, but sometimes you must do more of one thing to get the opposite- war to gain peace.'" Alterran finished the quote. No one had noticed that while Reiden had been talking he had returned from scouting around. "None of us have ever forgotten what he had said."

"None of us." Alcrus repeated. "We all suffered from it, especially because we weren't the only ones that were there, a lot of friends we knew were there and died. Zarko spent a little over nine moon cycles to recover. He rarely spoke to us in that time. He just layed there in rest, and each of us took turns tending to his wounds when it was needed. He never even slept. All that was on his mind was stopping Arctus."

Clay didn't know how to respond. He had took a moment to take it all in. "I didn't know that Zarko had so much more behind him..."

"We all have more behind us that anyone could realize. In fact, Zarko isn't even a Northern Hawk owl." Alterran noted.

"He isn't?"

"Nope. He's... well, he doesn't have an owl species. He's sort of his own kind." Reiden smiled at Clay softly, but then it slowly faded. "Hey... what's that over there?"

Everyone turned their attention back towards the sight of the beyond and could barely make out the sight of a small group of Tytos. But they were carrying something...

"Good Glaux, it's the Pure Ones! And they're loaded with flecks!" Alcrus hollored.

Clay knew what flecks were. He had read about them before, in a library of Zarko's. "We need to report back to Zarko, let's go!"

They all nodded in agreement and took off.

* * *

><p><em>Zarko stood there, alone. Standing there, watching the destruction around him, and knew that he had to stop it. This was it. He fought and fought up to this very moment, and Arctus was near. Arctus... his brother... he had been looking forward to this point, but he never thought it would come. The flames of death were all around him in this fiery land, the burning rock at his feet. All he knew was dead- everyone, and he had failed to stop it. But this only encouraged him, raged him. His eyes set upon the large, gleaming grey tower about half a mile in front of him. Smoke was pouring out of the sides and top. He took one more glance behind him, and he saw a large, burnt dead tree on an island- the <em>Yggdrasil_ of the owls. The screams of the dead echoed in his ears as his eyes filled with rage. Some voices he knew, others he didn't. Names were running through his mind, of every soul that had died._

_He was now alone. No one to walk by his side. No friends, no family, just him. He turned back to the spire in front of him and began to walk upon the fiery ground, for he was not worthy to feel the pleasure of the wind passing through his wings._

"_**Come, brother: Your death awaits."**_

"_We shall see..." He whispered to himself in a gruff voice as his feet stepped along the burning ground and fire surrounded him. "Only one of us can emerge victorious, and it may not be me, but it's worth the risk of trying. If I fall to the ground in defeat, it'll be over my dead body."_

_He was now walking towards his brother's tower, and he knew death calls his name._

Zarko opened his eyes slowly, but his face held not that of fear or shock, but just a neutral face. No, he hadn't been sleeping, it was a vision. He looked outside at the end of his hollow and flew out into the rising sun. His eyes darted around the forest of the small island of which he was living on. He was at peace with the quiet he had, it soothed him. He looked around slowly until he spotted a rabbit marking its scent on some flowers. Zarko dived down, quiet as nothingness, and he struck into the animal's flesh with a shriek. There he was, positioned on top of a wounded rabbit about a quarter of his size, looking up at him in fear and shock. Zarko stepped off the rabbit and looked down at it's eyes and made a connection. Zarko smiled mournfully, "May you live forever in Glamoura."

The rabbit seemed to smile back as it closed it's eyes and it's nose was no longer twitching. Zarko slowly began to eat his kill. The rabbit was about three quarters of the way eaten as Zarko stepped away when his hunger was settled. He noticed he had left the rabbit's back left foot, untouched. He stared at it and sighed in sadness. Luck couldn't save him from what was to come. He silently flew off and landed atop his tree where he could watch the setting sun. It was all he could do with his current time, as he had been waiting on something in his discreet work. The sun gleamed in between his feathers and reflected off his eyes as he stared deeply into the orange light. He might as well enjoy it while he still had time... the time that he had left.

"The sun sits there, circling us outside, having to watch us fight each other to the death. It's all it can do." A voice said. Zarko sighed and lowered his head slightly.

"Yet it is the only thing we have to look up to." Zarko said. He felt the presence of the other being land merely a branch behind him. "At times like this it is difficult to to find hope. It's better to use it as a beacon and not just an orb in the sky."

"Indeed. Hope is one of the few things that can keep one from giving up." The male voice replied. Zarko slowly blinked his eyes. "And in order to keep hope, you must have something to look up to, to guide you."

"What are you doing here, Greer?"

"You know what my job is."

Zarko nodded. "A courier... one chosen by Glaux to carry out his word." He turned around to face him. "What message does Glaux bring?"

Greer had seemed to be a normal Barn Owl, but was a bit smaller than others. He was clean of battle marks, or any signs of violence. No blood, no scars, no dirt, no ruffled feathers... Just perfectly renewed.

"There's been a slight change of direction in the rift." He began. "When the War of the Ember comes, and Nyra and Tenshu have been killed, it will not mean that the fighting stops. The War of the Ember will end, and the War of the Owl World will begin. It is unknown currently what Arctus is up to, but whatever he plans for, we must be prepared to face it."

"I see..." Zarko mumbled in thought. "But there must be more to it than that."

"Yes, there is. Something else has... changed." Greer's expression changed, but Zarko could not identify it. "Another being is being born unto the world early. Somehow, the change of the lively events has caused a certain wolf to be brought to the world with a new course. When he comes, it will be your job to find him, and train him to become one of you."

Now it was Zarko who changed his expression. Was that really what was going to happen? He knew the wolf of which he was talking about. Zarko knew that this wolf was a great one, and he knew that he certainly could be trained under his command.

"I understand. If that is Glaux's wish, than that is what I will do." Zarko bowed his head respectfully. Greer nodded.

"Then so it shall be. But I, myself, have a message for you, Zarko. As a courier."

"I'm open ears as always."

"Fighting this alone will not grant you success." Greer stated clearly. "You'll need the support of your brothers and allies to win this. Your brothers, your team, your friends, the great tree, and unite them all under one flag. If they do not fight by your side, then there is no hope for them. Eventually, they'll fall apart slowly like a disease, even if the plague of the evil is extinguished. They need a reason to fight. They need to know what is worth fighting for. Otherwise, those of Yggdrasil will not last."

"You may be right." Zarko admitted. "Can't be discreet forever. Eventually we must be known to them. I'll do whatever puts me at risk to make it the best I can for them."

"And you must stop disguising yourself. Lower it down. Reveal yourself to the Earth." Greer replied. "Do you have any questions?"

"No, Greer." Zarko answered. "But I have a request."

"What is it you ask of me?"

Zarko reached into the pack along his leg and pulled out some rolled-up parchment. "Give this to Valcia, in the far northeast."

"Valcia?" Greer asked, as if he didn't know the name. Zarko realized this, as he had forgotten that it was only Clay, Kludd, Thora and Uglamore who knew that name. But he did know the name that nore only he was more familiar with, but himself as well.

"Give it to Sylvanar."

Greer nodded in acknowledgement and Zarko turned around back towards the sun, which was now about halfway into sight. And as silent as he came, Greer was gone. Zarko smirked and spread his wings, and he began to glow until he took a new form. He was still an owl, but he was different. Much different.

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><p>Meanwhile, on the beach, Kludd was standing, staring at the same sunrise Zarko was. Kludd's mind was always clouded with questions and thoughts, but when he looked out there in the distance, it was gone. No worries flowed through his mind, nothing but peace. It was a nice getaway from the madness that was going on in his life. For some reason he really liked the beach; the warm, dry sand on his talons felt... relaxed. It was a big difference when he compared them to the times that he carried his battle claws through war and flung them into the flesh and feathers of other owls.<p>

He sighed quietly as he slowly closed his eyes to let his surroundings take over him. He didn't know what the reason for his sigh was, but he felt that it wasn't a problem. It was strange to Kludd about how one certain spot would help clear his mind and bring him at peace, it was something that he had never expected to find. Though, there was one thing missing here...

"Hey, Kludd!"

_Oh, yeah, that..._ Kludd remembered. He turned around to see the black Snowy landing silently on his left, her talons sinking slightly in the sand. She smiled at him softly, and he slightly returned it, unsure of what to do. It was again that Kludd was around Thora, and he started to become slightly nervous. He tried to hide it the best he could, and from Thora's facial expressions, it was hard to tell how well he was doing. Finally, he replied, "Hey, you, Uglamore and Zarko are already done with your job?"

"Yep. It was good seeing my sister again after so long, I dearly missed her. We did convince them to help us out, and Uglamore decided to stay with them for a few days." She explained.

Kludd nodded and decided that he might as well make conversation. "What brings you down here?"

"Oh, nothing really; same as you, I just like the sunsets and sunrises, and Zarko is doing the same at the top of the forest, but he doesn't seem like he wants to be disturbed, so I thought I'd come down to you instead." Thora answered, looking out at the darkening sun herself. "So, why is it you're down here on the sand and not in the trees like a normal owl?"

Kludd churred at this. "Well, I honestly don't know. When I first awoke after dying, it was on this beach in the sand. I think it was somewhere around this spot, actually."

"Interesting..." Thora said quietly. "I honestly don't know where I was when I woke up after being pushed into my own forge. All I can remember is flying and finding you three."

"Well, some memories come back easier to others, I guess." Kludd looked around at the crashing waves as the two were in a long moment of silence.

"Hey, Kludd?"

"Yes?"

"Can I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"Well..." Thora Plonk had no idea how to start out and ask this. She had taken note of Kludd's body language, nervousness and shyness whenever she was around him, and she knew it was something she didn't do around others. Was it maybe because of he felt it was his fault that Nyra, his mate when he was Shattered, had pushed her into her own forge? No, that couldn't be it; that wouldn't explain the stuttering and lack of words to use. _There's no use sitting here being silent while he waits for me to continue... I need to just ask!_

"What's wrong?" Kludd asked as he tilted his head.

"I was wondering... why is it whenever I see you around me, you're always so nervous or shy?" She asked plainly.

Kludd almost lost his balance as she said this. How was he supposed to answer that?! He couldn't lie to her, and he couldn't just not answer. Oh, Glaux, what should he say? More importantly, how would she react? Kludd was overwhelmed right now, and now it was _he_ who had someone waiting for an answer. "Well... it's, uh.."

"See? Just like that, what's the matter?" She asked curiously. Kludd felt like he was going yeep while he was on the ground.

"I... don't really know how to put it." He said quietly while looking at the ground in front of him.

"Just try," Thora encouraged him. "I'll try to understand."

_Easy for you to say..._ Kludd thought. "Okay, lately I've been... feeling, something, and I didn't know what, so I talked to Zarko, Clay and Uglamore about it, and they explained it to me, and when I learned it... I didn't really know at first, but then all the sudden I came to adapt it as to what they said it was. But, it just seems hard to say it, but..."

Kludd was lost in a silence. Thora, meanwhile, had a changed expression. But this time, it was a smile. A _large_ smile. _I knew it._ She thought. Truthfully, she knew what he was going to say, and she didn't want him to go through the hard objective to spit it out. She couldn't tell how she felt back, though. As far as she could remember, she never had anyone who actually felt that way for her, and she hadn't felt that way for someone else. But she knew what she should do.

"Don't worry, Kludd." She said softly, wrapping a wing around him, surprising the Barn Owl. "You don't have to say it."

Kludd's eyes widened in complete shock. This was _not_ what he was expecting. He was at a loss of words. Here he was, on the beach, with Thora's wing embracing him, and she had stopped him from finishing, but why?

"Thora?" Kludd asked softly as they both continued looking out at the fiery orb.

"Yes?" She asked, not looking down at him.

"What... what do you mean?" Kludd asked, unsure. Thora smiled brightly and looked down to the point where they were face-to-face.

"I mean, that I love you, too."

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><p><strong>Well, I did end the poll about a week ago, and I got the results. And they were 5 yes, 1 no... *Blinks* Well, I don't really know about the one "no", if that person was being in honest in opinion, was just wanting to stand out and be the "big difference" in the voting, or just felt like being mean. Either way, it doesn't matter. Anyways, I hope this chapter settles it for you, Shard. :P As you've requested, it's finally happened.<strong>

**Greer, was actually an European Barn Owl I "met" in Busch Gardens during my Spring Break vacation. He and I were... mesmerized, by each other. I stared into his eyes, he looked into mine, and wherever one of us moved, the other looked there. It was a neat experience to me.**

**Also, I was just doing a little random stuff and looked up owls on Google Images, and I found something I thought could match Zarko. I DO NOT OWN THE PICTURE, IT BELONGS TO A TATTOO ARTIST NAMED SAM PHILLIPS! The link is below. That's what Zarko looks like now. I chose someone else's art because I'm a horrible artist. Just delete the spaces! (Took me like 10 min in order to get the link in without it disappearing -.-)**

4 . bp . blogspot _ mfF HTd 0QX dc / TS5 3ZM _ v SEI / AAA AAA AAA JU / q3X 61T k77 c4 / s 1600 / owl - skull - tattoo . j p g

**I did a little random research and I found Norse Mythology (With Thor, Odin, Loki, etc.) and I learned that there's this tree called Yggdrasil, so I came up with the idea of having the brothers refer to the Great Tree as that sometimes.**

**Once again I'll give a reminder: If you want to use my characters, or create a side story or whatever, all you have to do is message me the details, and I WILL approve of it. Hell, I don't care if it's even MA content, if its a crossover with Looney Tunes, just let me know the info and I'll give you permission. But if you are going to change some of the characters personalities or events, then let me know.**

**And lastly, I am **_**incredibly**_** sorry for the lack of updates! I've been really busy lately, and sometimes they're things that just tick me off! I love writing this because it gives me something to think about, and the reviews that you guys give me always raises my mood! The story would be nothing without the viewers!**


	26. Chapter 26

***Sniff* I'm so happy, I got reviews! YAAAAAY! I'd like to thank you still-loyal readers, especially Crazybird101 and , my two most dedicated reviews. I owe them a lot, both of them. I'd give them both a bear hug if I could! But that doesn't mean my other viewers are important, too (I can't view the names atm). Okay, there may be some parts of certain reviews that slightly bug me, but I try to ignore it. And no, I'm not calling out names. I'm sorry, it's just it bugs me when people try to correct me about little things sometimes, that's just the way I am. I mean, to me it just doesn't make sense to try and correct other people's stories or ideas when it's not yours, most likely that's how they wanted it to be. It bothers me to have things saying, "Oh, you misspelled a word!" or "It's this not that." I'm not insulting anyone, and I don't want anyone to feel bad, I'm just letting you beware of the way my mind thinks. But if it's something HUGE, like putting a wrong name or missing complete sentences or whatever. **_**That**_** is something I'd like to be noted.**

**Ahem... To be completely honest, I never even expected the story to actually make it! I've written it further then I thought it would take, I've gotten more reviews than I ever had expected- I consider having more reviews than double the number of chapters a fair amount, but right now it's more than triple! Halleluja! And even more, I'm a lot different than when I was when I first started writing this story, a lot of things have changed, but I'd rather not get into too much detail.**

**Oh, and guess what!? THERE'S ANOTHER GUARDIANS OF GA'HOOLE BOOK COMING OUT! WOOOO HOOOOOO! This time it's about Lyze of Kiel (Ezylryb), and the book is going to be called "The Rise of a Legend" and will be out this coming June!**

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><p>Kludd felt himself slowly coming awake as he groaned, his eyes opening slowly. He yawned loudly as he looked around himself, feeling relaxed. The sun was going down, just around the point for him to get up. But slowly, he came to realize something. Something was different. <em>Why am I feeling so relaxed? What happened this morning? And... What's this brushing up against my...<em>

Then it hit him like a smack on the forehead. He looked down on his right to see Thora leaning against him, sleeping peacefully. That's right. He had told Thora about how he felt about her, and apparently she had felt the same, and now... well, there they were. He didn't have much of a memory on what happened after that. But right now, he just wanted to sit here with his love.

"Kludd, Zarko wants to see u-" Kludd snapped his head to the hollow entrance and saw a shocked Uglamore who had stopped mid-sentence, mouth agape. Uglamore churred nervously as Kludd glared at him. "Um... perhaps this isn't the best time..."

"You think?" Kludd replied sarcastically. Uglamore stammered as he continued.

"Y-yeeeaaahh... as I was s-saying, Zarko wanted to see us. I... I'll just tell him th-that you need some time to... get u-up first..." Uglamore said quietly as he slowly stepped backwards outside and flew off. Kludd sighed aggravatingly. Well, it's not like he could blame him, he didn't know. Either way, he hadn't come on his own decision, Zarko had sent him. And if Zarko had sent him, there was no denying coming to him. But Zarko could be patient, after all, Uglamore said that he'd tell him that he just needed time to get up.

_Glaux, I just hope he doesn't tell Zarko what was going on..._ He thought for some random reason unknown to him. He shook his head to get it out of his head and looked down at Thora, shrugging his wing again her. "Hey, Thora... wake up, Thor..."

Thora slowly began to blink her eyes open tiredly at the sound of Kludd calling her by both her name and nickname (No, it has nothing to do with the Norse God Thor). Like Kludd had, she yawned. and spread her wings, the feathers brushing across Kludd's face and beak. Thora blinked wider this time, and looked up at him, realizing what she was doing. She gasped and pulled her wing back, blushing. Kludd churred playfully as the soft feathers moved against his.

"S-sorry, Kludd, I was just..."

"Stretching, I know." Kludd smiled at her. "No problem with that, but we gotta get up. Uglamore came in, and..."

"He did?" Thora asked. Kludd nodded. "Great, what'd he do about it..."

"Don't worry... he said that Zarko wanted to see us, and that he'd tell him only that we just needed some time to get up." Kludd explained briefly. "It's too bad, you looked so beautiful when you're asleep..."

"Oh, stop it!" She said as she turned her head, embarrassed. It was hard to see a black owl like her ever blush- that is, if owls _do_ blush. This only made Kludd churr more.

"Come on now- it's true!" Thora eventually gave up and let loose a small smirk, but then turned around, bent over, and rammed Kludd out of the nest, causing him to fall back, and now she was the one laughing. Kludd quickly recovered and lifted his head up towards her. "Alright, point taken..."

"I'm glad you got it." She said, smirking even wider. "I was just about to tackle you again."

Though she was a female, Thora used to be a roguesmith. She had gained a lot of strength from her times on this job, and also while in combat with her times fighting alongside Zarko, Clay, Kludd, Uglamore and Zarko's brothers. But Kludd still had more strength than her, but it wasn't enough to completely withstand her.

"Oh, Glaux, please don't..." Kludd muttered, standing up. "Either way, we wouldn't have much time. Zarko said he needs to see us, so we should probably head over there. It's been about a good three minutes since Uglamore got here, and I don't think we should make him wait."

"Alright, fine, let's go then." Thora sighed, stepping out of the hollow and taking off, followed quickly by Kludd. He was still getting used to this. It was just this morning that he and Thora had pronounced their love for each other, and they were acting like they'd been with each other for years. It was kind of strange to him, but he liked it. It took them a few minutes, but eventually they arrived at Zarko's hollow and entered to find everyone, except for Zarko, inside. Kludd frowned at this.

"Where's Zarko?" Thora asked, thinking the same thing as Kludd. They all seemed to glance between each other until Uglamore spoke up and said,

"He was gone when I got here, and I haven't seen him today. Reiden's the one who told me that Zarok wanted to see us." The Barn Owl stated, looking at Reiden, as did everyone else. He shrugged.

"Zarko's on his way, he just had to do something first before he came in here. He wanted to address something first, then we'll get down to the next step in the plan."

"So, what is it he wanted to 'address' us about?" Clay asked, speaking up for the first time since he had gotten in the hollow.

Reiden was about to answer, but then stopped as the sound of talons against wood struck at the hollow entrance. They all snapped their heads in that direction, but Clay, Kludd, Thora and Uglamore had their eyes widened in shock and their beaks agape, speechless.

Standing there was an owl, and without a doubt, those eyes belonged to Zarko. He was slightly taller than the rest of them, and his wings looked like that of an angel's. Above his eyes ran two long strands of feather, going just above his head. But the color of his feathers also interested them- they were grey and black, varying different shades all around his form. His inner-face, wing bases, and stomach were all light grey, while the rest of his face and the area just around and below his neck were a darker shade of grey. The area below the base of his wings were almost black, darker than the rest of his body. He looked almost nothing like the Northern Hawk Owl they knew, but as stated, the eyes were the exact same; black pupils with fierce, orange irises.

He stepped forward and cleared his throat, causing the four to jump back. Zarko (If it even _was_ Zarko) opened his beak to speak.

"I'm sorry to shock you all out of nowhere with this, but I felt that it was needed. This is how I really look, I'm nothing like you saw when you first met me. A disguise was necessary, but it isn't anymore. So, yes, this is me. I do not have an owl species, I'm just an owl. A mix of different breeds." Zarko explained quietly. He seemed unsure about his decision to reveal this truth. "I'm sorry for the deception, but I had to."

"There is no needed apology." Clay spoke up, drawing everyone's attention. "But I feel that it would be best if we ignored this, and not let this get in the way."

Zarko smiled and nodded in agreement as Alcrus spoke up. "He's right. We should continue on with the plan. Let's get to work."

Zarko walked into the hollow further towards the maps and notes he had around his hollow to explain the plan. When all eyes were on him, he began.

"Alright, here's the situation." Zarko began quickly. "The Pure Ones have started setting up bases in the Beyond, and it won't be long until the Guardians get there and the war begins. Right now we'll have to take our work elsewhere- we're heading to the Beyond to set camp and keep an eye out on all activity before the fires burst. We cannot risk taking down an entire settlement, otherwise they'll know something's wrong. We're only going to watch on alert to plan for later. Alterran?"

"Yes, brother." Alterran nodded, stepping forward. "Our main objective is to learn as much as we can about the Pure One's advancements and setups as much as we can for when the Guardians get there. We'll take shifts on watching and resting, two of us at two outposts away from our main base near the Salt Lakes. Speaking of our base, it's an underground burrow I found, perfectly abandoned. Reiden, if you may?"

"We'll organize the shifts once we get there. Know that we'll be doing more than just watching, we might have a few other things to take care of. You're going to be independent on what you bring there, just don't pack like it's a camping trip, keep everything lightweight."

"Lastly," Alcrus cut in. "We'll have to be careful on who we make contact with in the Beyond; there are the packs of wolves and Blacksmiths and Roguesmiths alike. Yes, we can make contact with them if needed, but do try to avoid giving them vital information. Don't give away _anything_ that can risk them knowing about us. Feel free to make a bit of conversation with them, speak to them, have a little bit of conversation with someone new. But if they ask a question that can leak information on us, answer them, but not truthfully."

"That's all there is two it." Zarko finished. "If you have any questions, feel free to ask. That's all there is to it. Understood?"

"Understood." They all said in unision. Zarko smiled.

"Alright, pack your things." Zarko told them. "It's gonna be a long wait for the war. Leave at anytime you feel, but no later than midnight. And do not travel alone, stay in groups of two or more at all times. Dismissed."

Clay left first and headed off to his own hollow. After about four minutes, when he got there, he began searching through his belongings for things to take with him. The Spotted Owl lifted out his battle claws and mask and set them to the side. His mask had been customly made during his years. He'd asked Alcrus to modify his battle claws in a way that'd allow him to have more movement in his talons. They were layer over layer fight, and he was able to spread his talons faster and wider than he did before. His mask he had carved into had a lot of design to hit. The flawless carves made swirling lines travel all over his armor, making it almost look like something of that of a pure warrior.

He looked back in and his heart rate slowly changed its pace, but he couldn't tell if it was faster or slower. He reached in slowly and pulled out a small amulet. It was a normal, silver circle with a deep blue flawless sapphire inside of it. When Zarko had brought them back, he had retrieved any personal items of theirs for them. Clay remembered this... it was Cleve's... Cleve made it for him. It was a gift his brother had given to him a long time ago, not long before he had died on that one night. Clay grinned through sadness. _I miss ya, WPB. _Clay slowly put the amulet around his neck, and tightened it to where it wouldn't fall down. Maybe when this wall all over he could see him again...

He looked back inside his bag for more items he needed. He hummed silently as he searched around, tossing items side to side to see if he could spot anything. What else would he need? Something to kill time, maybe? _What to get, what to get..._He thought slowly until an idea suddenly came to him. _Books. I need books. _During their time with Zarko, he had helped teach them to read better than before, as well as in languages other than Hoolian. But where could he get books at? Thora was a blacksmith, so if she had any books it would probably have been on forging, and Clay wouldn't do well with that. Uglamore? No, despite him being older, he used to live his life as a Pure One, and he showed little interest in reading unless he needed to. Kludd, maybe, but he spent a lot of time watching things and trying to learn more about himself, as well as asking Zarko questions.

Then it hit Clay, dumbstruck. Zarko, of course! He was always writing, he definitely had to have some books he could read. The question was, though, what was he writing? He figured that he'd might as well ask, but he had wished that he would have been able to ask him _before_ he flew from there. He put all of his items aside (which was his armor and battle claws) and flew out to Zarko's hollow again, and landed right outside of the entrance when he heard someone talking in there. The Spotted Owl leaned in to listen to what was being said.

"So, what is it you wanted to tell us?" A male voice said. Clay recognized it as Kludd. What was Zarko talking to him about? _Wait a second, he said "us," so who else is with him?_

"Oh, nothing really." Another male voice said, and it definitely belonged to Zarko. "I just thought I'd see you two to say congratulations, and how proud I am of you two."

"Wait, what?" Two voices said at the same time, one Kludd, and the other a female voice, obviously Thora- considering she was the only female owl with them at the time. It took a few moments for Clay to realize what they were referring to, but when it hit him, a smile grew on his face, happy for his two friends.

"Yes, I'm aware of what happened this morning. I could feel it in my heart. Since we're heading out and going to be there for awhile, I thought this would be a great time for you two be able to, you know... talk to each other, cherish some time together. Plus, when the fighting comes, there's no guarantee about living through it." Zarko seemed to hesitate, surprisingly. It seems as if he regretted what he had said. "But don't take it the wrong way, I don't mean that we _are_ going to die, but anything is possible. But if I don't make it, then I'll make sure that you two do. But I want you both to be able to live together for at least some time. I know what it's like for something to come to early."

"Th... Thank you, Zarko." Thora said softly. "It means alot to us that you would devote your life to us for our own future."

"Yes," Kludd said, looking at Zarko. "Thinking back, this is all because of you that we're here. You brought us back and allowed us to be together, and all of us to live again."

"There is... no need to thank me." The Spotted Owl heard him say, slowly and quietly. Clay frowned at this. _Does Zarko not feel he is responsible for greatness?_

A few seconds later, Clay entered, surprising all of them. Kludd immediately spoke up. "Oh, Clay! Sorry, Zarko just wanted to talk to us-"

"Don't worry, Kludd, I heard." Clay stopped him so he didn't have to continue.- "I know already, congrats you two, good to see you finally made it to each other."

They both blinked in unison, confused, until Thora spoke up. "Figures that Uglamore would have told you..."

Now it was Clay who blinked. _Uglamore knew this and he didn't tell me?_ "Erm, yeah, he told me while we were out a few minutes ago." He lied, not wanting to let them know that he was eavesdropping.

"Anyways, we need to go get ready, thank you again, you two." Thora spoke up as they left the hollow quickly. Clay walked in behind them as they left and flew off, and as soon as they were gone, Zarko said,

"Uglamore didn't tell you, did he?"

"Nope." Clay said bluntly with a smirk, causing Zarko to churr. "I was just coming over here and I heard you guys talking right before I came in."

"Well, can't say that there's any blame to be placed." Zarko said, turning away to walk over to an edge in the hollow he used to write. "What can I do for you?"

"Well, you said to bring some stuff we felt we'd need with us, correct?" Clay asked, approaching Zarko from behind. Zarko let out an "mhmm," nodding. "I came to ask to for something to read, considering you're always writing. It also made me curious on what it is you spend so much time writing down."

Zarko stopped writing and placed the quill he was using down, softly. He turned to face Clay, but not a look of anger or annoyance, it actually seemed like he was glad that he asked. Zarko started towards the hollow entrance and turned back towards him, motioning with his head to follow. "Come with me, I'll show you."

Clay and Zarko took flight in the air towards the west- a direction they hadn't taken before, the beach that they always went to was on the eastern side of the island. Zarko led him above the forest trees, where he saw something that he hadn't before. There seemed to be a small mountain, about a mile or two away. The mountain he saw was about two trees and a half tall, very small. Clay noticed that Zarko was carrying a torch in his talons, lighting up the area around them.

Five minutes later, they made it to the small mountain and landed in the middle of the height, inside a hidden cave. It was pitch black inside, due to the fact that Zarko had to leave it outside since he had to walk. Clay had to follow him closely behind, for the cave was rather narrow. Eventually, they stopped when they got into an open area. All that could be seen was the rock around them from another two torches sconed to the walls on each side, but nothing too far. Confused, Clay looked at Zarko.

"Where are we?" He asked, cocking his head. Zarko looked down at him with a smirk and used a foot to flip the scone to the side, lighting up some type of rock, causing it to glow, and then it traveled into the dark area. Zarko walked over to the other side and did the same, and the same reaction. Clay watched the stones as they lit up the area like a fire would, but there was no fire. Clay looked at the room before him in amazement, his beak dropped.

It was a _library_. A HUGE one! The rows were endless, filled with books, but in front of them was a wooden table where owls could set their books down on when reading. Clay walked up to the first row in front of him and looked at a label on the side of it. _"Bird species, H-P."_ He looked at the next a few rows to the left. _"Owl History of Ga'Hoole, A-F."_ This was incredible!

"Did you write all of these?!" Clay asked through his shock. Zarko churred and shook his head.

"No, no, all of these are either copies or originals of all of the books ever created." Zarko explained. "If you want a book, this is where you get it. My secret library."

"So what is it you write?"

"Follow me." They flew down the rows until Zarko stopped in front of one, then landed with Clay there. Clay looked at the sign and read aloud,

"'_Lives, past and present.'_" There was no title letter sections, but it seemed like it would be alphabetical as they went down the row. "What are these?"

"These books are... histories, on people. Everyone I know, I write every little detail seen through their eyes from the second they were born to the day they die. How do I get this? I don't know. I just sit down and start writing. I don't even know what I'm writing sometimes, but I never dare to open them back up. No one is forgotten in history." Zarko blinked as an oddity passed through his mind. Zarko usually remembered things, but this was strange even to him. Zarko shrugged and looked down at Clay. "Feel free to grab whatever you want, no matter if it's one of my books or another book. I'd prefer for it to be returned, but if something horrible happens it's not too big of a problem."

Clay turned to Zarko and nodded with a smile. "Thank you, Zarko. I'll try to find a book or two in the next few minutes. Also, mind if I leave with you?"

Zarko seemed a little surprised by this, as his facial expressions changed. After a few seconds, he decided, "Sure, I don't see why not. It'll be good to have some company." Zarko turned to started to walk away towards the way they had came slowly, but stopped. "Can you find your way out?"

"Yes, probably."

Zarko continued walking to the outside. "When you leave here, make sure to turn the torches straight."

Clay just watched as he left and began to walk down the rows, looking side to side at all of the large book shelves before him. Great, first he had no books to read, and now he had too many to choose from. _What in Glaux's name should I get? Nothing pointless, nothing pointless..._ Zarko said that there was _all_ kinds of books, and Zarko was an "other" before- a Human, was it called? Maybe he could find a book off of them and read it to learn more about Zarko's past. He decided to do just that, and spent about five minutes walking down the rows until he found the correct section. _"Human History." _He walked down there and took a few books, then put them in a sack for him to carry on his back on the way out. But before he left, he did as Zarko asked by turning the torches, and the rocks stopped glowing, darkening the room.

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><p>It was marvelous. Absolutely marvelous. Thousands of owls at his command, flying and marching in their heavy armor. They all listened to him, and him alone. Soon, the owl kingdoms would be at the base of his talons, then earth within his grasp, and it would travel beyond that. Death was his backbone, an unbreakable backbone. It supported him and his army, and it could not be rid of. Nothing could stop him. Nothing.<p>

Arctus watched from his un-owl-like tower as many of his minions took up to arms. But no, these weren't Pure Ones, far from it. The Pure Ones knew nothing of the true plot behind their reasons, they were just being led blindly by Nyra, his mate. And when the truth would come to them, they could either fight under his command, or die, being crushed slowly to hear every hollow bone in their bodies break just before they died. There was nothing "Pure" about them, there was nothing great. It was only he, Arctus and Nyra who were great, who were powerful. No matter what species of owls they were, they were all the same to him- _his_ servants.

"Sir." Arctus flung around behind him, a red glow in his eyes. It was Tarn, the Pure One second-in-command below Nyra. Though he was a Burrowing Owl, and not a Tyto, he had been trusted with the true plot behind them, and he had accepted. A smart one, he was. "I come under your power baring news from Nyra."

"You may speak, Tarn." Arctus growled, not in a patient voice though. Tarn paid no heed to his anger, but continued as told.

"Nyra is putting the Pure Ones in place to fight the Guardians in the Beyond. So far the only sightings have been of the wolves and other small life forms. Everything is going according to plan, nothing can stop us." Tarn said briefly. Arctus shook his head.

"No," He looked back over the edge of the tower at the flaming lands of the west. "We aren't invincible, no one is. The only possible way to succeed, is leave to no weaknesses."

Tarn nodded. He was right about this. Those who always believed that they were invincible and could do whatever they want without a problem were fools, and didn't last. But they, however, knew that they needed to beware of what could cause them to lose this fight. That was something he had to learn the hard way. Tarn walked over beside Arctus to look over the tower as well. The area was like volcanic firelands, the ground as burning rock that you wouldn't want to touch with your bare feathers or skin. The heat of the place, though... the heat made Desert Kuner feel like a bucket of water to cool-off in. The stretched as far as they eye could see, and the only thing heard was metal clicking or shouting of the soldiers below, or the sound of volcanoes acting up. Tarn smirked; it was music to his ear slits.

"Your new objective is to set up Pure One bases to assault the wolves of the beyond. We can't risk them not attacking us, we'll have to push them out of the way. Leave no survivors; the Guardians cannot know that they will not have the support of the wolves." Arctus commanded. "Report to Nyra first and tell her my orders. Also make sure to tell her that I will not tolerate failure. That's all I have to say. If I have more, I shall send out another messenger. You're dismissed."

Tarn nodded and flew off, leaving Arctus alone in his tower. The black Barn Owl looked over his armies as they gathered up in preparation for war. He looked a lot like Zarko in some ways. Arctus was covered in ashes and soot, adding to his black feathers. Like Zarko, he was scarred. His eyes were blood red instead of black, and he has irises and pupils. His wings were almost too foreign to be an owl's- they almost looked like a mix of angel and dragon winds, and they could cover another average-sized owl completely. But his talons- by Glaux, his talons were just like that of a hagsfiend's! They could cut metal without any stagger if he wished.

However, even though he was looking out towards his soldiers of hagsmire, they weren't what was on his mind. Was it his mate, Nyra? No, it was different than that. It was Zarko. He'd had his brother stuck in his mind for awhile now, and he couldn't take it out of his head. _My brother... he's a fool. I despise him, his holy rationals make no sense to me. _There is no good or evil, no right or wrong, there is just the strong and the weak. Zarko believed in doing what was "right," and bowed down to this false god of theirs. They call _him_, a _god_? Glaux was nothing but another mythic being. They called him loving, the creator, their heir. Yet if he was anything they said, there would not be violence, he would not allow all that happens to take place. This was his fault. He was nothing more than an illusion. But his brother was different.

To him, Zarko had nothing right about him. He pursued to befriend those around him instead of controlling them, showing signs of weakness to others. He fought for a purpose that had no reality. Myths and legends? It was better to trust your strength and smarts, than the clearly pathetic and untrue. But a frown appeared on his face as he looked down.

_I hate everything about him... but what is this love I'm feeling?_

Zarko, meanwhile, back on the island, was dealing with the same thing. Arctus was on his mind. He, too, hated everything about his brother. The way he made him watch all of his friends and family be slaughtered in front of him, the way he tortured for pleasure, lusted for power. Arctus would kill to get what he wanted, and he has in the past, so there was no doubt he would in the future. He had to be stopped. If Arctus succeeded here, there would be no hope left. Power was something he had a lot of, and he needed to take that power away. He harnessed his hatred into strength against his enemies, all of the hatred he had for him.

But... he was unsure. He pictured both of them in human form, Zarko pointing his gun at Arctus's head. He could end it all- the pain, the suffering... but could he have the will to kill him? His own brother? He didn't know the answer.

_I will kill him. Though it hurts, I _must_ kill him..._

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><p><strong>I'm planning on increasing the romance in the story, if I can. I'll work on adding more KluddxThora and ZarkoxValcia(Sylvanar(?)), because I feel that it'll do some good for the story. The romance is what I need to add to make this story better- the simple talking parts aren't doing much. i'm also going to get some more actual action in now.<strong>

**ATTENTION! I have a request! On the 24th of May, around 9:00 p.m. EST, go to ****www . twitch . tv / slootbag****. Yes, I'm a World of Warcraft player and I might be doing something with this guy. So if you want, you can watch me :P. But note that I MIGHT NOT be in there, because there's only going to be 25 people out of over 110 that are wanting to go. But it's going to be just 23 being chosen because Slootbag and the person hosting the event (Darrie, a friend of mine) are already in there. So if you can't tell if I'm there, look for the name "Alterran" somewhere. I know, I play World of Warcraft, I know a **_**lot**_** about both how to play the game and the plot inside the game, blah blah blah, but hey, I enjoy it. If you happen to play it as well, PM me, and maybe we can talk either about the story or the game or whatever the hell you want. I don't mind, I've already done the same with a fellow author of mine.**

**Also, I assume you all can see the whole thing between Zarko and Arctus. This was slightly inspired by a song, actually, called "I Hate Everything About You" by Three Days Grace, because as stated in the song, they hate each other more than believed to be possible, but they love each other for some reason that they can't understand. In fact, I get about half of my story ideas from songs. These songs mainly come from Three Days Grace, Three Doors Down, Avenged Sevenfold, Skillet, Creed, Pillar, Two Steps From Hell, Brand X Music, and a few other bands and music companies (I know, a weird mix of music). Another large portion is from other things, either from what I've seen and learned in my life or others stories/games/movies.**

**And one more thing! I ask of you guys, if you can, to help out Native Avenger, an author whose books I've been reading for awhile now. He has a friend who is recruiting for voice actors for the first book. Just PM him, and he'll send you two YouTube links to the videos that explain what will be going on, and the rules. Before you can ask, yes, I will most definitely be in there, voice acting as well. No, I have not decided who. I'm choosing between either Pelko or Brise in the story. But PLEASE be careful when you're doing this! It is a DARK story, so if you want to voice act, you might have to do some screams or shouts or chants or whatnot.**

**Anyways, Airman out!**


	27. Chapter 27

**Alright, I thought I'd give you guys a bit of my idea for the next chapter or two. I'm planning on taking a small break from the action after this chapter, but I will get back to it soon- better than my past action scenes, which sucked. But I'll have **_**one **_**more in this chapter, hoping it will be better. And I'll start getting back to it when it gets into the war. Also, this chapter I'm going to work on the differences between Alterran, Alcrus and Reiden, since I haven't really gotten to that (Alterran will be in next chapter). Oh, and if you remember me mentioning the event thing that was going to be streaming live, yes, I made it on there. :P In fact, I'm now battletag friends with Slootbag.**

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><p>Uglamore, Reiden and Alcrus had taken off together almost immediately after the mission was explained. They hadn't spoken a word since they left, and the silence was rather eerie to Uglamore. He looked out in front of him where Alcrus was navigating for them. He was staring intently at the ground below, seeming to take in every last detail that came to his head. He was carrying a few small packs, probably water, food, and a few weapons. Alcrus seemed to be the knowledgeable one of the four brothers. What he lacked in strength, he made up for in smarts. His gift in knowledge seemed to help with a lot. His navigation, for example. He seemed to know exactly where he was going by heart almost. But he still had quite a bit of strength either way.<p>

Uglamore looked port and saw Reiden flying only about three wingspans away. He was carrying a lot of things- battle claws were being worn, a few large brown, linen sacks of armor in his talons, another linen pack on his back, carrying many swords and others pairs of battle claws, as well as some other materials, and two smaller packs on his legs that were carrying other smaller objects, but Uglamore couldn't see what was within them. Reiden was clearly the powerhouse of the brothers, close to a walking tank. He could probably take down a Great Grey in merely seconds. But whenever they were all on the battlefield, the majority of them went after Reiden, but got their tailfeathers handed to them.

Uglamore flew slowly over to Reiden and asked loudly, "Need any help with that?"

"No... I got it." Reiden grunted, re-gripping the sacks in his talons. "I've carried more than this before."

"Are you sure?" Uglamore asked, unsure of the weight he was carrying. Uglamore was only carrying another small linen bag across his back, which wasn't too much for him.

"Yeah... I'm sure..." Reiden said, nodding. "I appreciate the offer though... Al, how are we lookin' up there?"

"We're right on course." Alcrus hollered back, not turning his head. He was rather focused on his job, and it didn't seem like it could be broken.

"How long should it take for us to get there?"

"About another hour or two. Why, you getting tired?" Alcrus slowed a bit, getting closer to the two so he could speak more easily to them.

"Just because I'm carrying all of the supplies doesn't mean that I like it." His brother grumbled, shifting his legs around.

"We can rest if you guys want. I don't mind." Alcrus said, turning his head back for the first time. He seemed worried for his brother.

"No, no, I'm sure Uglamore woul-" Uglamore cut him off.

"I don't mind either, we should rest." Uglamore clarified quickly. Reiden groaned in irritation. "Look, there's a cave down below, we should stop there."

"...Fine." Reiden finally gave in, lowering his altitude slowly. Uglamore looked up at Alcrus, who just nodded his head in response as he followed Reiden down, Uglamore doing the same.

Reiden landed in the small cave first, crashing down to the rock floor as he dropped his weight and rolled across the floor. Alcrus followed in quickly, rushing over to him as he threw his two smaller bags to the side. He grabbed Reiden and began flapping backwards, pulling him against the wall. By the time he had gotten him in place, Uglamore landed in, slowly putting down his sack. Alcrus put a wing just below Reiden's beak and waited a few seconds, before turning back to the Barn Owl. "He has an irregular breathing pattern, might be a virus. It's causing him to be dehydrated. He may have tired himself out too much. Get my bag, I have some water in there."

Uglamore nodded and flew over to the other bags, looking at each one so he could fine them. It took him a few seconds to find the correct one, opening it and pulled out what seemed to be like a metal cylinder with an odd top. He shook it and heard liquids swishing around, and he quickly tossed it to Alcrus. Alcrus quickly seemed to turn the stop until it fell off, then poured it slowly into Reiden's mouth. Uglamore looked down and noticed that Reiden's leg was also bleeding from the crash.

"His leg is bleeding, we need to patch him up." Uglamore noted for him. Alcrus nodded again and calmly explained,

"Keep pressure on the wound, I gotta find something." He said, sprinting back over to the sacks that Reiden had dropped.

Uglamore wrapped his talons tightly around the point where the leg was bleeding, trying the best he can to stay with himself. He looked down at Reiden's face. _Are they always having these problems? Are they really not as invincible as we thought?_ His eyes and beak were closed, the only sign of life being his breathing and heartbeats. He could hear his heartbeat with his special Barn Owl ear slits, it was beating in an odd pattern, just like his breathing. Uglamore was confused about what was going on. He probably felt that something was wrong, but he refused to stop. He couldn't understand. _I'll have to ask about this later..._ Alcrus returned, but not as Uglamore had expected. He was holding a wrap of bandages that he set down next to them, but then had a stick and a sword as well. Was he planning on amputation...? No, he couldn't of, because he started rubbing the stick across the rock wall. After a few tries, he cursed in frustration.

"Frink, the wall is too moist. I need something else." He threw the stick outside of the cave and ran back over to the sacks as he searched through them again. Uglamore's attention turned back to Reiden and let go of the wound. It was a bit worse than he had thought; the blood was all over his foot, and the bleeding wasn't slowing down. It seemed that something sharp had punctured his leg, might have hit an artery. Alcrus came back again with a small white box. He opened it and pulled out a smaller, extremely thin stick with a red end. He quickly struck it across the black side of the box twice until it lit on fire. He lowered it to the sword and left it at the tip until it started glowing red with heat. He threw the smaller stick across the cave and picked up the sword. "Let go of the wound, use your other foot to clamp his beak shut, and hold it tight."

Uglamore's eyes widened as he realized what he was going to do. He quickly obliged and shut Reiden's beak as tightly as he possibly could, and Alcrus slowly brought the glowing tip of the sword to the wound. Uglamore couldn't watch, so he turned his head as he heard muffled sounds being attempted to come out as a scream, and a large force tried to open his foot. When it stopped, he turned around to face him. His eyes were wide open, and his breathing slowed a little. He let go and slowly backed up, looking at Alcrus, who had just finished bandaging up Reiden's leg. "My gizzard, what did you do?"

"I cauterized the wound." He said quietly, walking over to pick up equipment that had fallen out of the bags. "Heat up a metal edge by bathing it in fire, then put it against the wound. Or you could just simply put fire itself on the wound. It hurts like hagsmire, but it stops the bleeding."

Uglamore blinked in surprise at this. Alcrus was really intelligent to know this kind of stuff. But then again, Zarko was just as smart. Was it just the two of them, or were Alterran and Reiden just as smart? He glanced over at Reiden, who was still unconscious. It was then he realized what kind of trouble they were in. They had an owl down, the one who could carry more than both he and Alcrus combined and brought that much with im. They were intended to meet up with the others at the base by morning and they were stuck out there.

"Don't worry, he'll wake up soon, probably from the next five minutes to a couple of hours." Alcrus had seemed to read his mind as he picked up a mask off of the cave floor and set it into one of the sacks. Uglamore turned around towards him and decided to help and put the equipment back as well.

"So, do you have any idea where we are?" Uglamore asked, glancing out of the cave.

Alcrus also glanced out to the cave and hummed for a second. It seemed to be a somewhat foresty area, but it was also a little humid and hot. The trees seemed to make the place dark, but some of them looked burnt. After a few seconds of examining, Alcrus decided, "We're somewhere on the border in between Shadow Forest and the Beyond, we shouldn't be too far."

"That's a relief..." Uglamore sighed as he picked up a pair of battle claws and put them away in another sack. "Should we wait for him to wake up then head out? Or should one of us go to the base to inform Zarko of what happened so he won't worry?"

"I'd say we wait for Reiden to wake up."

"And why is that?"

"Well, for one, I'm the only one that can navigate to the place; if you stayed with him without me and you were attacked, you might not be able to handle against many yourself. If I stayed with him while you went out, you'd get lost because you wouldn't be able to navigate. Besides, we won't be able to carry all of this on our own." Alcrus explained as they put in the last few pieces of equipment and tightened them shut.

Uglamore began to drag the sacks back to the side of the cave in a pile, turning back to Alcrus who was heading back to check on Reiden. "Makes sense, I guess."

"It does." Alcrus nodded, picking up the box full of sticks that he had lit on fire. "Alright, we might be here for awhile, so we'll need to get some supplies. Uglamore, I'm gonna need you to go fetch some wood for us, I gotta watch after Reiden. Be back here in 20 minutes at most."

Uglamore nodded, picked up an empty bag and a pair of battle claws, then flew out. It was only once he left that he had realised how hard it was going to be to find some fresh wood: The forest was just about dead. This part of Shadow Forest, like Alcrus had stated, was right next to the Beyond where the volcanoes came from, killing most of the trees. He couldn't even see where he was going because of so much fog, but from the smell, he had learned that it was not fog, but smoke. He couldn't find dead wood or they'd have a hard time lighting it on fire.

Uglamore decided to rest for a second and landed on a branch of a dead tree. He talons quickly wrapped around his branch in a perch, but unexpectedly, the branch broke off immediately and Uglamore began to fly straight into the ground with the dead branch still in his talons, unable to think out of shock and surprise. By the time Uglamore had come back to the reality of the current situation, he hit the ground and tumbled across, the branch breaking from his grip.

"Ugh, good Glaux..." He muttered as he stood up, looking around. He hummed and found a living tree, and immediately set to work, gripping himself to the side of it and scraping the wood off with battle claws, pouring it into the bag.

Eventually, he returned to the cave, and beak-dropped when he saw another small pile of wood already there, next to Alcrus.

"H-how...?"

"There were live trees right next to the cave, you flew right past them." Alcrus said flatly with a small smirk. Uglamore was dumbstruck, shaking his head. "Next time, pay attention." Alcrus laughed.

Uglamore opened the bag and dragged it over to the pile of Alcrus's wood and dumped them on top of each other. He took another stick out of the box and scratched it against the side, lighting it on fire, and he flicked it into the pile of wood. The fire lit up the cave like an explosion. Uglamore took a few steps back while Alcrus just lightly churred.

"Oh, don't worry, the fire won't hurt you unless you let it." Alcrus slowly sat next to the fire and stared into it, then spoke to him again, not looking back. "It's called a match, a human invention. The end point of the stick is flamable to put it simply, and the box the holds them is pretty valuable because you're able to use the side of it to light it up. I enjoy using human technology, always comes in handy."

Uglamore nodded and slowly sat next to the fire with him. They were both in silence for a long while, staring at the flames while the only noise was the crackling of the wood. He couldn't help but wonder, were the brothers always like this? He hadn't thought about this query before, but now it was bugging him. Zarko seemed to work separately from his brothers, but his three brothers always worked together. But what was it like before Arctus has turned on them? Had they always worked together, or did they still work separately before then? They were an interesting set of siblings indeed, but it was hard to tell whether they got along or not...

"He was always the stubborn one..." Uglamore slowly turned his head left to Alcrus, who was still staring at the fires. "Reiden, I mean. He never listened to us if he didn't like it. It always came to where he was pushing himself too hard, trying to prove himself more than what he is. The truth is, though, he has no need; as his brothers, we love him. It worries us when he risks himself or pushes himself too hard. We just can't get him to understand how much we care for him and that we don't want him to push himself beyond, but to push with us." Alcrus picked up his sword from his side and began pushing it around in the fire as he continued. "I remember one time when he had saved me a long time ago. We were still humans at the time, we were fighting in a battlefield at the time. I'd been pinned down by gunfire, next to a car and had a few bullets in my leg. I hadn't gotten in much of what happened, but he had run out in the open and tackled the care out from behind me and pushed it fast into the soldiers attacking me, who were all out in the open. Reiden had crushed them between the car and a concrete wall, but he hadn't noticed that the car was on fire and burned himself. He had walked back over to me and I had asked him, 'I thought Zarko had told you to stay back and keep the escape route secure?' And he had just simply shrugged and said, 'I hate guard duty.'"

Alcrus seemed to smile sadly at this memory. Uglamore hadn't understood everything he had said, as he wasn't familiar with human terms. However, he did understand the whole point of the story. He looked back down at the fire and smiled as well. "What got him to be so stubborn?"

"Overconfidence." Alcrus answered simply. He pulled the sword back from the flames, revealing the glowing red blade. "Like I said, he's _always_ been stubborn. I don't know when it started, it was just sort of a common thing that we never took note to until later. We all just have a love for each other as brothers." Alcrus began to raise a wing to the heated metal and a strange aura glowing in between his curved wing and the aura slowly formed around the sword's blade.

Uglamore had recalled Kludd and Zarko mentioning to him before that they had some type of power that they rarely used. Though he was never told why they didn't use it often, and he couldn't figure this out on his own. There were so many wonders about these brothers... He'd have to get to know more about them sometime. Uglamore hadn't noticed that Alcrus had been done with the sword and was now lowering the heated blade onto his foot. By the time Uglamore realized this, the blade was already touching him. But he felt... nothing. It was warm, hot, but it didn't hurt.

"Did you have any siblings before you came to the Tytonic Union?" Alcrus had been staring Uglamore in the eyes while the blade just laid again his skin. Uglamore was confused by this- it was still melting hot, but it didn't hurt. After a second, he recalled what he had said earlier.

'_The fire won't hurt you unless you let it.'_

"Well... yes, actually." Uglamore admitted slowly, turning from Alcrus and looking back into the fire. "A sister- she was a Short-Eared Owl that our family had found abandoned as an egg around the same time I was still in my own egg. She had hatched about a week after I had, so I kinda became the 'good older brother.' Our da was a great owl: He loved us both, and would do anything for us, even though he always fought with mum. When he had died from an accident while hunting, both of us mourned the loss of him. Our mother had became a bit abusive to her for some reason, probably because she had supported the Tytonic Union and wanted me to join, but she hadn't been very found of the fact that her daughter wasn't a Tyto. One day she just... disappeared. Mother didn't know where she went either, but she didn't care. I still wonder today what happened to her, and I still miss her when I think about it..."

"Really? Hm..." Alcrus lifted the sword from Uglamore's leg. "What was her name?"

Her name? Glaux, he'd almost forgotten to mention her name. It'd been so long since he'd thought about her that he didn't even remember. He shut his eyes tight, thinking hard. Then, it came to him.

"Her name was Ruby." He said, opening his eyes and staring back at Alcrus. Alcrus remained silent for a few seconds before he smiled and put a wing on his shoulder.

"Do not worry for her. She's alive and well. As long as we continue to work, we'll be fine. I can promise you that." Alcrus assured him. Uglamroe was comforted by this, remembering how she used to call him "Bartholomew." He hated his name, but he always loved hearing her call him, even if that was his name back then.

The moment was broke as the sound of quick footsteps of an owl sprinted past them and outside of the cave, followed by the sound of forceful gagging. The pair quickly stood up and exited the cave into the now-raining forest, seeing Reiden yarp a _huge_ pellet, followed by some clear fluids pouring out of his beak as he knelt down in pain. Alcrus quickly acted up. "Woah, hold on, Rei! Good Glaux!"

Reiden had finished yarping and gasped for air as he stared at the ground, wide-eyed. "What... what happened? W-where are we?"

"Easy now, brother." Alcrus attempted to calm him down. "You decided to carry more weight than you could handle at a time like this. We landed in a cave to take a break and you got knocked out and rolled across the floor the second you landed. We had to cauterize the wound in your leg from the landing and put you to rest. Turns out you also had a virus, but after that yarping I'd say that you just got rid of it."

Reiden let out another "ugh" as he leaned back and attempted to take a step back to the cave, but no avail. He felt too weak to fly, and it hurt too much to walk. Alcrus and Uglamore were immediately by his side and picked him up with their talons as they flapped him slowly back into the cave.

"We'll have to rest here for the day and have you get better. We can't risk going out at this time with you in this condition." Alcrus ordered. "I just hope that the other's won't worry..."

* * *

><p>Clay was getting rather bored with this flight. He had chosen to fly with Zarko because he thought that something interesting would be going on, but there was nothing. He looked around, and all he saw was Zarko near him, who had been carrying tons and tons of equipment hidden inside a bag on his back, and the rest of his gear (excluding his mask) equipped. He noticed, though, that one of his swords was missing. It was instead replaced by an interesting, two-sided weapon. It was short, a long handle with two blades at the top. They started out small, but grew as they went out, eventually curving on each side, like a triangle with one line curved out on each side. Zarko noticed his staring and smiled.<p>

"Never seen a tomahawk before?"

"A toma-what?"

"A tom-a-hawk, a type of axe. One of my personal favorite weapons. While it's slower than a sword due to weight, tomahawks happen to be smaller than axes, and with my strength, I can swing them just as fast. Plus, they pack quite a punch. Nothing beats iron and steel tribal technology." He explained proudly, looking down to it as he had been talking. Zarko looked back up to Clay, who nodded.

There were clouds surrounding the two in their area, though everything was still visible. The sun had been rising though, and while they'd already rested a few times while eating as well, they planned to reach their destination before the end of the night. Zarko had urged to do this with Clay, and despite how much the young owl wanted to rest, he agreed. Now they were in the Beyond about 20 or so miles from the lakes that they were aiming for.

The Spotted Owl felt the need to kill the silence and looked back to Zarko. "So... Tell me about this army Arctus is raising. Who are they?"

Zarko looked to him and flew a little closer, moving to him as to not speak so loud. "It's an old legend and organization that was shunned, but no one knew what big of a threat they really were..."

"What are they called?"

"They're called the 'Illuminati.'" Zarko whispered, saying the last word with a grim voice.

Clays eyes shrunk upon hearing this. He'd heard of that word before, and no one ever spoke of them. In fact, it was _forbidden_ to speak of them. He didn't know much about them, but he knew enough to understand that they were feared.

"They will stop at nothing to bring horrors to life. They're satanists. They worship the false gods of destruction, chaos, blood, death, fear, everything. Khorne, Nurgle, Tzeentch, Hagsmire, Sargeras, C'thun, Yogg-Saron... All of the daemons that seek chaos in existence. If they succeed, more souls than you could ever imagine will be damned to hell, and Glamoura, Heaven, Glaux himself, will be no more, and hall will become our life in both worlds of the living and the dead and beyond. There's more than just the Owl World at stake, and that's why we must fight."

Clay was speechless, now feeling heavy. This was unbelievable. There was way more to this than he had thought, now somewhat in fear. "B-but we can stop a b-bunch of owls w-with you, r-r-right...?"

Zarko sighed, both because of his answer and the stuttering. "It's more than just Hagsmire that we fight; the death gods are offering Arctus their blessings and rituals to raise their soldiers and minions- _daemons_ with the strength of death. I've faced these monsters... They can, and _will_ kill everything and anything in painful ways, and in masses. We will all die if we do not act."

Clay was only now in even more terror, his thoughts darkening. "Wh-what all do they have?"

Zarko looked at him, dumbstruck. "Warlocks, Necromancers, Bloodmancers, Dark Sorcerers, Faceless Watchers, Undead Ghouls, Hagsfiends, Death Knights-"

"OKAY! I get it!" Clay shrieked. Zarko sighed and shook his head.

"I'm the only one in the Owl World with the knowledge of each and every enemy they have at their will. The only ones that they could possibly know about are Hagsfiends. We need more to fight them than just ols." Zarko hummed and looked around. "We need fighters who have encountered these before, and a lot of them. I only know of a few..."

"You do? Who?!" Clay wanted to know, as he was desperate to get as much help as possible. Zarko stared blankly.

"It won't be easy to make them get along. There are several.." Zarko stopped suddenly, rolling his eyes around.

Clay tilted his head. "What's wrong?"

Zarko kept glancing around and leaned close to his ear slit and whispered, "You see those Rogue Smiths?"

He looked around, now noticing that many owls had been gathering in their area and flying in the same direction that they were going. There were at least ten total from all directions. "Yeah, what about them?"

"They aren't Rogue Smiths."

Claymore of Firthmore felt his heart pound and his gizzard twist as he heard this. He knew what he meant. The "Rogue Smiths" nodded to each other and flew in on them, dropping their coals, Tyto eyes fixtated on them behind their silver masks with battle claws extended.

He could only think of one thing to say.

"Oh, _sprink_-"

"GET YOUR FRINKING HEAD DOWN!"

That was all that Clay heard and he felt Zarko's foot on the back of his head, pushing them both down into a dive as dozens of battle claws just barely missed their feathers. Clay screamed as they dived downwards with their wings folded to their sides.

"Keep going, don't stop for anything!"

Clay stole a glance behind him and saw all of them doing the same as they were, in pursuit. He stopped screaming, but breathed hard and fast, now seeing the dead trees of the Beyond below them. They were getting closer, and they were now about 200 feet from the trees.

"Zarko?!" Clay panicked, seeing that they weren't slowing down.

"Just a little more...!"

_150 feet..._

"They're getting closer!"

"I know!"

"You're going to kill us all!"

_100 feet..._

"ZARKO?!"

_65 feet..._

"SPREAD YOUR WINGS!" Zarko exclaimed as loud as he possibly could, and the two both did so and went from unimaginable speed to slow flight in a second. This caused Clay to scream at the top of his lungs.

Clay flapped his wings like there was no tomorrow. Zarko, however, had pulled out his tomahawk with his wings still spread and spiraling while raising above ground, managing to swing it right into the neck of a Pure One lieutenant, separating the head from the body. The rest of them wailed in a panic while they attempted to pull up, looping upwards through the trees and back into the sky. Four of them hadn't made it; three of them crashed straight into the ground, killing them, while the last one had tried to pull up, but flew straight into the sharp edge of a branch, having tried to fly backwards with his body upright and the branch piercing straight through him. The Tyto screamed in pain, stuck in place.

Meanwhile, Clay and Zarko both flew straight upwards after regaining their balance of flight. Clays eyes were bulging out of his head while gasping for air, flying with Zarko who looked back at the Pure Ones who were after them again.

"There's seven left, but they seem a little spooked." He looked back to Clay, getting a quarter of a wingspan away from him. "They won't fall for the same trick twice, and we can't let them report back, we're going to have to fight them."

"What?!" Clay didn't know what else to say, unsure about this. "But they outnumber us by triple and a half! How can we fight them?"

"By using our weapons, skills and talents to put them out of their misery." Zarko said, tossing his sword to him as he kept his tomahawk unsheathed in his foot.. "I've taught you combat and we've been fighting as a large group this whole time. Now let's see how you do in a pair against many."

Clay blinked. '_He's right. I've been cowering this whole time, and it's time I stood up for myself, and all I know.'_ He took the sword and nodded as the two turned around and flapped their wings and hovered in place, battle-ready.

They continued to the two, but the colonel leading them raised an eyebrow.

Zarko closed his eyes slightly and smirked, taunting them.

Both groups charged each other.

Upon impact, Zarko struck first, barrel rolling to the left and hack his weapon sideways into the gizzard of the first one, killing him instantly. Zarko turned to see another swiping his battle claws at him, but ducked his head and tackled him head-first, backing up and attempting to slash him down, but the Pure One saw it coming and raised his battle claws, parrying his attack.

Claymore took a deep breath in and held it upon colliding with the enemy, extending his sword out in front of him to stab directly through the neck of the first one that got to him, making him gasp for breath while Clay released his own. He felt the weight of the corpse bringing him down so he pulled it out and swung it in a defensive manner towards another who was also wielding a sword and blocked the attack as their blades crossed.

Zarko recoiled from his parry, but wasted no time in going back in for in attack. The Pure one dodged off to Zarko's left and barely escaped, making the tomahawk swing downwards and pulling Zarko a little, looking over at the foe to see both battle claws mere inches (imagining inches as them being human size) from his face, but raised up his free left under both of the attacker's legs, raising them up to just barely miss him. At the same time, this opened a spot to strike, so he brought his small axe up like an uppercut into him, and releasing, killing yet another one.

Clay pushed the sword back with all his strength, struggling intensely until he saw another Pure One flying towards him for the kill. He reacted quickly by retreating from the struggle and moved behind the Pure One, causing the one that had been charging him to kill the one whom he had just been fighting. He took this chance to move in and strike the next one straight into the eye, making yet another kill with the sword.

Zarko looked to the last one- the colonel. He charged him with a bone-chilling battle cry, his tomahawk raised. The colonel raised his fire claws and caught the blade of the axe, trying to pull it from his grasp but Zarko pulled it back, leaving himself exposed to the pair of fire claws, which were now pushed into Zarko's side, causing him to wince in pain, but recovered and swung his axe to cut the legs of the attacker off. There was a cry of pain as Zarko did this, then finished his pain with a dismemberment of the port wing, causing the last Pure One to fall from the sky. Zarko breathed heavily, looking down at the burning wounds on him, and Clay arrived at his side.

"You're hurt." Zarko looked over at Clay, still breathing heavily, but smirked. This confused him. "What?"

"You said 'sprink.'" Zarko churred. Clay blinked.

"Yes... yes I did." He started churring as well, forgetting about the wound in Zarko. He said the worst curse word an owl could say!

Zarko settled down and, flew to the trees and landed on the branch where the impaled survivor was, Clay landing behind him. The bleeding owl whimpered in fear.

"Captain Lykos?" Zarko said, looking down at the owl, causing both him and Clay to widen their eyes in surprise.

"D-Don't kill me..." He begged. "I was j-just following orders..."

Zarko shook his head and leaned in over to him. "I won't hurt you, but calm yourself. Tell me, what were you doing here?"

Glanthropos looked up at him, unsure of how to answer. He already seemed like he could trust Zarko, as he had known his name somehow. "W-we... were s-sc-scouts... we g-got orders t-t-to search th-this area... s-suspected a-activity..."

Zarko nodded thankfully. "Thank you, Lykos. I won't kill you, but I won't leave you to die either." Zarko pulled out his tomahawk and swung it down, cutting the branch and causing him to fall. He yelled in pain, but it stopped as Zarko caught him and lowered him softly to the ground.

Lykos was a Grass Owl, an averaged sized one, but he had many scars. The wound was deep inside of him, but Zarko pulled the stick out. emotionlessly. Ignoring the yelp of pain, he reached into his bag and pulled out bandages, wrapping them around the owl to stop the bleeding, then helped him up. "Find shelter, you'll feel better in a few days. Go back home, to your mate and hatchlings in Tyto forest."

Lykos looked at him, confused. "H-how...? Why help me, your enemy?"

Zarko shook his head. "You're a good soldier, and you deserve better. Now go." He lifted up, about to fly up when suddenly Lykos stopped him.

"W-wait! What... what's your name?"

"...Zarko. Zarko Elkholm." Was all he said as he took off, Clay right behind him, who was giving a curious look. "Yes?"

"You... you let him live..."

Zarko shook his head again. "He won't go back to the Pure Ones. He's better than that."

Clay decided to ignore it, but looked around and frowned. "Hey... where's Alterran?"

"He's 'watching' Kludd and Thora." Zarko answered flatly, not looking at him, as they could see their base in the distance between the lakes

* * *

><p><strong>*Raises head slowly from behind desk* Um... Hey, long time no see...? *Ducks head back down to barely avoid a knife being tossed* JESUS CHRIST! I'M SORRY I HAVEN'T BEEN UPDATING!<strong>

**I've had half of this chapter written for about 2 months now, but I've been gone for so long because I'm moving from South Carolina to Germany and I have no computer, and it was a miracle that I got this crappy laptop to work. I hope that explains it. I'm currently in Texas for a family reunion, Killeen. Ah, right at my birthplace.**

**The ending was rather rushed... I'm tired, and need to sleep, so I apologize for lack of detail.**

**WOOT! We've passed the 100 review milestone! YAY! Owls of Glaux is now the MOST viewed story, and the biggest, in Guardians of Ga'Hoole Fanfictions. I LOVE YOU ALL!**

**Khorne, Tzeentch and Nurgle are from Warhammer40K. Sargeras, C'thun, and Yogg-Saron are from World of Warcraft. Blizzard and Warhammer40K own them, not me.**

**PLEASE LEAVE REVIEWS!**


	28. Chapter 28

**Hey, everyone! Not going to spend a whole lot of time talking, but I decided on what to do, finally, and just going to go back and simply edit the chapters' content. I mainly am in the process of fixing up some minor errors, but I'll be stating when I'm recreating certain scenes or chapters.**

**Anyways, I'd also thought I'd mention a few other reasons as why I'm trying to get back into writing... When I started the story, I was in Germany, then moved to South Carolina. Well, guess where my new house that I just moved into is? Germany! And I'm here for another 2-3 years! There's also **

**WARNING! This chapter will contain M rated content during the flashback part written in italics (language). Read with caution!**

* * *

><p>"Kludd, you don't have to-"<p>

"No, no, take it, Thora."

"But Kludd... It's _your_ kill, I didn't do anything to catch it."

"It doesn't matter, Thory. Take it, I'm not hungry."

Thora sighed as she looked down at the vole, finally giving in after hearing the nickname. She took it and nodded. "Thank you, Kludd."

Kludd shook his head, watching her take a bite. "You don't have to thank me, love. I was just doing what anyone should."

Thora smiled and begun eating, and Kludd just smiled back and walked to the edge of the hallow, looking out at the morning sky. They'd been traveling together the entire trip, stopping to eat, and Kludd had hunted all of the food for Thora and barely ate anything if he had at all. Kludd had obviously cared for his new love, and wanted her to be as healthy as possible. Thora had just finished eating as Kludd sighed, looking up at the sky.

"Those stars..." He said, looking at the dusk sky that still held the stars. Thora had come up next to him. "They... They just look so beautiful."

Thora smiled and leaned again him, looking at the same view he was as she wrapped a wing around him. "You know, I always used to watch the stars every day at this time before I went to sleep, or just watch them until I slept..." She closed her eyes dreamily. "They bring back such memories..."

Kludd nodded. He remembered when he was an owlet- vaguely, but yes. He remembered his mother, father, Mrs. P, Eglantine, Soren- oh, Soren... He was such a good owl back then, telling stories with their little sister, always so adventurous... Yet he never got to cherish his time with him. It was saddening... Yet what was his son like? Was Coryn anything like him? The scar did seem a lot like Nyra's... Was it from birth, or a fight? If so, who'd scratched at him in such a way? The questions kept coming, asking himself what he missed while he was being driven by madness.

It was the soft murr from Thora that snapped him out of his thoughts, looking away from the stars and down at her. He smiled softly and wrapped a wing around her. He then remembered something that Zarko had told him.

_"They judge us by what they see, but they don't see us. We are not our feathers, nor the skin beneath them. They don't feel an ounce of our pain, because they trust their eyes more than their gizzard. But we're not about to give up, 'cause there's gonna be brighter days. Life won't play along, right will go wrong, but we ain't gonna let it drag us down. Perhaps if everyone really did care, we'd live to see the day where we all loved, had no pride, no tears, no lies... And no one dies."_

It made sense. He was judged by who everyone saw him as, and not what he was behind his dark, black eyes. Kludd started to think- could he really be forgiven? Was there truly a way to cleanse him of his past? He smiled to himself. He thought of his future, with Thora by his side, living near Eglantine, Soren and Coryn... He nodded slowly.

_'Perhaps someday...'_ Kludd thought to himself.

He suddenly remembered again that Thora was against him. He put his head against hers, rubbing her side with his wing. "Thory?"

"Kludd?"

"After this is all over- when we defeat Arctus, or if- what will we do?"

Thora blinked her eyes open. The thought hadn't occurred to either of them yet. They'd have their whole lives to spend once they finished everything, yet they'd only been looking to the past and the present. What was to come in the future?

A large headache came to Kludd's head suddenly, causing him to unnoticeably wince, the large pounding growing stronger. He saw that the snowy owl next to him was fine, and nothing of pain showing, just thought. Kludd clenched his eyes shut, wanting to get rid of the pain. It felt as if a nail was being hammered into his skull from every side!

_'Oh, racdrops, Kludd... Think ya big dummy!'_ Something screamed to him mentally. And he did. The pain all stopped suddenly, and he could no longer feel Thora's warm feathers, nor the ground beneath his feet. Instead, across his whole body, he felt a breeze of wind... Very warm and relaxing wind... Wh-what was going on? There was only one way to find out, so he opened his eyes, and the sight made him feel alive with a gasp.

Endless trees covered the ground below him, in the colors of golden, green, orange, red, and whatever autumn colors you could imagine. None of them were broken, not even ancient! They looked as if they were young and grown, housing owls and mammals alike, even some other types of birds. The sun was bright and shining, blue sky with white, puffy clouds. Over the large forest, for what seemed like the length of about 10 miles, there were large, snow-capped mountains, and a large waterfall near the bottom at the end of the forest. Kludd, for the first time in his whole life, felt alive.

He looked upon the land with awe, speechless. Nothing could describe it. His mind was mesmerized by the sight- wait, but was he actually seeing this, or was his mind thinking this... No, it felt so real! He could feel the swift wind, the warm air! How could it not be real! Closing his eyes again, he smiled, then sighed. And finally, it all stopped.

Kludd opened his eyes, and he was back in the hollow with Thora at his side and under his wing. His smile remained. "I don't know what we'll do-" He was answering the earlier question. "-but I know where we'll go."

"And where is that, dear...?" The Snowy's soft voice hit his ear slits like a rainbow.

"Somewhere... But we'll see it when we've finished."

For the rest of the night, they remained like that, unmoved, neither wanting to end it.

* * *

><p>Alterran smiled from the tree on the other side of them, able to see and hear what went on between them. He loved seeing the two get along so well, even caring for each other so much. It made him think... About the old times...<p>

He shook his head, looking back to the two and smiling once again before flying off. It was time to find some food of his own, and he began scanning the forest floor for anything moving- mice, voles, rabbit, deer, just anything to sate his hunger. Alterran knew that he could survive the night without food, but he wanted to eat either way.

While looking around and flying, he couldn't help but think: Did Zarko know what he was doing? Was all this planning and sacrifices they had made really been worth it, will it be? No, Alterran never, EVER doubted his brother, but he was cautious as to what actions they made and took note of anything that might have been a problem. But so far... Alterran was unsure. He thought about all they'd been through together... They'd fought legions and wars, non-stop, and came out alive. Scarred, but alive. But could they manage one final and large fight across the owl world?

Just as he thought this, he spotted movement, and spotted a mouse running loose, perfectly open. Alterran smiled to himself, then dived down. Just as he was about to reach it, he spotted another pair of talons grip the rodent and kill it immediately. Alterran skidded to a halt, landing roughly on the ground and looking at the other owl, who looked back him.

The two recognized each other the second he saw the face of the Barn Owl, and relaxed. "Oh, it's you."

The courier nodded, tossing the prey to him to eat. "I came to you, because Zarko is in the company of one of the four, and Reiden and Alcrus are in a cave with the last one. You're the only choice I had."

"Alright." Alterran nodded to him, starting to eat the dead rodent. "What is there to report, Greer?"

"To start things off, Arctus will soon, within a two weeks' time, have gained the use of the portals to start summoning the lesser daemons. In six months, he will have its full power."

"Great Glaux, he's going faster than we thought..." Alterran whispered under his breath. "What does he plan to do when it gets at full strength?"

"We can only guess." Greer said emotionlessly. "What we do know is that we need to act quickly and stop it; whatever it is, it won't be good."

Alterran finished off eating and grunted, thinking about the possibilities. "I'll make sure this news gets to Zarko."

"Good. But first, I must speak with you."

Alterran raised a brow. "Hm?"

"It's about Zarko... He's not acting normal." Greer started quietly. "He's starting to get reckless. It seems as if he's lusting for blood, getting angrier. The torch is at his fuse, and every day he's unleashed his... Darker, side. He goes around thrashing at whatever he can out of anger. I feel that we need a way to calm him and keep him in control of himself for the safety of us all. The strength and brutality Zarko has been showing these past couple of weeks has been excruciating. The strength and force he has is good, but... I'm worried for him, and I know you are, too."

Alterran stopped for a second, blinking. Greer was right, though he'd never shown emotion before. But Alterran ignored it... He'd die for his brother, and there was nothing he could care about more than Zarko. Zarko had put his life at risk for the sake of all of them, and they'd done the same for him. Alterran nodded.

"I'll talk to Zarko about it. I'll think of something to do for him, and I'll also try to figure out what's wrong."

Greer bowed his head, looking at the other owl in the eyes. "Good luck. Glaux be with you."

Greer lifted off, but Alterran called after him, "Greer!"

The Barn Owl landed on a branch, looking back at him. "Yes?"

"...He was there. In the first apocalypse."

* * *

><p><em>He breathed heavily as he sprinted, not even daring to stop for a second. His legs ran as fast and strong as they could to carry him and all his equipment. He heard every rapid step he made, every breath that he breathed out. The man couldn't stop, and he didn't.<em>

_Just as the figure jumped into a building via a broken wall corner, his foot his a small stack of bricks on the way in, causing him to grunt in surprise as he fell straight to the ground. He was stunned in place for a few seconds, but when reality hit him he shook it off and put his hands in front of him, attempting to get back up. He pushed his upper body back up in pain, but then yelled in pain as something jumped on his back, causing them to roll across the floor. Managing to get on his back, he found himself wrestling with a hideous, large, man-eating mutant._

_The shape of the body, the legs, fur, speed and fierceness was like a feral wolf that'd hunt for his or her prey without fail. But the feet, claws, and overgrown, massively sharp teeth were like a rat, awaiting to chew through flesh and soak themselves in blood. It growled with hunger, snapping at him mere inches from his face, his crossed arms the only thing keeping him from becoming food for this man-eating creature._

_The man, meanwhile, was armed for war- survival, more like. What was really noticeable was the military-class gas mask with the air filters on both cheeks and two, blackish blue lenses. Over the head was a helmet, the old plate kind and not that of a modern day U.S. soldier, instead it was one that seemed from the 1940's. Though why would he be wearing a helmet if he was fighting mutants, and other things of the sort? Back on track, the rest of his arsenal. Next, he had a black army coat, completely waterproof, with 10 throwing knives on his left hip, three hand grenades near his lower left torso, a trench knife vertically near his heart, and four or five assault rifle magazines on the opposite side, mixed with three handgun ammo. Speaking of ammo, he'd also been wearing a bandolier of shotgun shells diagonally placed across. But of course there wouldn't be a purpose to have all of this without the weapons to shoot them! Clipped to his front was an M4 Carbine Assault Rifle, being customized with an ACOG scope, forward handgrip, red laser pointer, and custom firing modes- currently on single burst. The right side of his back held a 1939 model Trench Gun, already fully loaded with some of the shotgun shells. The other side of his back had an M24 Sniper Rifle, a clip loaded into it and a bipod folded along it's length._

_The creature gave another sudden snap, but the figure barely dodged his head to the side, giving another large push back against it as it struggled to fight. Suddenly, he felt it digging its claws into the skin under his armor, causing his to scream in pain and kick it off him, throwing the mutant off to side side of the room. Taking the moment of chance, he stumbled up to his feet with slight difficulty, looking up to see his opponent already in the air on a pounce, pushing both against the wall into another struggle. The man had the advantage this time, size difference and gravity pulling the creature down to the floor with a help of a push. It landed on all fours, growling as it pounced again. But this time the man was ready. He unsheathed the trench knife and grabbed the creature by the body and plunging the blade deep into its throat, causing a howl of pain until at last, life faded._

_The figure withdrew the blade from the corpse, letting it fall to the ground with a thud. He breathed heavily before putting the blood-covered knife into the sheathe. He groaned and leaned against the wall for a moment before grabbing one of his air filters and throwing it to the side, then looking to put another one on quickly, screwing it out before sighing the breath he'd been holding out of his lungs. He leaned his head back and closed his eyes. "I've been running like this for 23 fucking years... And none of this shit will stop. These watchmen are the least of my worries..." _

_The man had spoke in a deep and smooth voice, but not too deep. The tone was calm and unsettling, but it didn't seem disturbing in any way. He looked down at the body of the creature, now known as a "watchman," and sighed again._

_"I need to watch out, I know I got more than watchmen lurking around here... But I also gotta keep my mind clean so I don't get torn limb from limb by shit that isn't physically real. I got much little time to rest until the rest of the watchmen show up. It's a whole god damn pack, so I needa keep running... That's all it is these days, isn't it- just, run run run for your life? That's it, and pray you don't get eaten alive by some sort of mutant or end up in The Reich and end up in a concentration camp by the Nazis? Fuck, Zarko, get a hold of yourself..." During this whole talk to himself he'd been throwing his hands up and pacing around the room, groaning and keeping his voice low._

_Before he could continue any further, he heard a howl, causing him to quickly unclip his M4 Carbine and crouching between part of the torn wall, looking out to see the rest of the pack sprinting at high speed towards him. Cursing, he raised his weapon and took aim at the closest on, right at the head, pulling the trigger. It dropped almost instantly, but the others ran past the corpse. More started to fall as Zarko pulled the trigger as the crosshair went over each one of them, but missed a few times. He counted at least 10 of about 20 or 30 dead._

Click!

_His eyes widened, grunting as they got even closer. He knew he wouldn't have time to reload, so he quickly clipped it back to his chest and ran into the building further, unpinning a grenade and throwing it behind him. He ran up the stairs, and by the time he got to the top, he heard an explosion and stumbled to the wall, hearing a few yelps and howls of pain as he went to keep running. There were bound to be more behind him. He _knew _that more had survived that. He kept sprinting up countless stairways, eventually coming across a door at the top, but it was locked._

_Zarko could hear them running up the steps, too many of them for him to handle at this range. Sure, he could use his shotgun, but he wouldn't have enough ammo to kill them all in one clip, and it'd take too long to reload that thing. He backed up a few steps, then tackled the door off its hinges, flying a little forward and to the ground with a grunt and a thud. He glanced back behind him as he got up, seeing the first one finish climbing the stairs and stopping for a second to watch and growl at him, but charged not long later, countless more following behind. After stumbling to his feet, Zarko ran, straight forward and not once more looking back. It was only when he started running again that he realized that he was on the roof, with no where to run but off of the building. He looked straight ahead and saw another rooftop, but it was quite a jump away, and if he fell then he'd surely die. But considering the fact that he was being chased by mutants that wanted to rip him to shreds, it was well worth the risk._

_That was it. He was at the end of the roof. His foot went half off the edge, half on the ground and slanted forwards as he pushed off and the other leg went in front, flying mid-air and saw that he was about to land. But all thoughts of succession faded in the next second when a pair of feet grabbed him by the shoulders and made him go whirling to the side. It took him a moment to correspond to the fact that he was being carried by something- another mutant, and by whatever gods were above, it was a flying demon! One of the worst of the mutations to have formed. It was incomparable to anything else, but it just had wings, tan skin and a horrifying face, and that was all that could be said._

_Clearly he was being carried off to a nest, and there he'd become food for this thing, or whatever children it had, if any at all. Zarko struggled to fight back, shaking his arms in an attempt to loosen it's grip, but failed. An idea popped into his head, looking and reaching for his knife, unsheathing it, but a bank turn made him lose his grip, juggling it until he got a grip with his right hand, then drawing the blade across the creature's left leg. A shrill of pain is what he heard as it let go, but then he noticed that he'd forgotten one last step in getting out: He was falling now, back down to earth._

_"AHHHHH!" He yelled as he fell, but instead of hitting land, he felt his back hit something not as hard, but it still hurt like hell and went straight through it- water. A river, thank god... Then it occurred to him that he may have survived the fall, but now, he was in the worst place to be while on the surface. He evened out in the foggy, contaminated water and glanced around quickly, soon enough seeing the biggest fish one would ever see coming straight at him, the mouth big enough to take his head off in one bite... and that's probably what it planned to do._

_Realizing he still had his knife in hand, he dived slightly to the left and watched it come at him, managing to gash into it's side with the knife and holding onto its back as it started to swim at a rather fast speed, also keeping his breath from leaving his mouth, waiting til it brought him to the edge of the river until climbing out and withdrawing the knife. A hand emerged from the water, pulling itself to the ground until the head appeared, gasping for breath through his mask. He climbed until he was yards away, breathing quickly for air. Though he didn't spend long on this, as he immediately stood back up and multiple, pincer-sounding claws were behind him, with dozens of skinny long legs ticking and clacking towards him. Zarko didn't even bother to look back. He ran. Straight for the buildings he went, the steps still right behind him._

_Soon enough, he saw an opened gas station with an open sewer hole. There was his exit! He pulled a grenade off his belt, pulled the pin and threw it behind him without counting. Stepping on the ladder, he ducked down until his head was below ground level, grabbing at the cover and pulling the heavy object over him. Glancing up, he saw the face of one of them- demon-like and screeching, getting ready to tear into him, some of the saliva smearing over the mask. All of his strength was put into moving the cover, jerking it fully over the hole just as he heard the grenade go off, igniting the entire station from the sounds of it, followed by pained roars and more screeching._

_ Zarko started climbing down in the pitch black, quickly. Perhaps a bit too quickly. He felt his feet hit every rusted bar of the ladder, step after step, but his foot missed one- actually, it was missing the remaining half of the ladder it seemed, and he fell down, further into darkness._

* * *

><p>Valcia's eyes darted around the land below cautiously, ignoring the blizzard that blew around her, flying with little problem. But she couldn't lie to the fact that she was cold. <em>So cold...<em> She shivered for a moment, but lost balance, then struggled to regain flight, breathing in surprise.

"Gr-Great Glaux..." She chattered through her beak out loud. It was getting hard to fly and she couldn't see anything more than two wingspans away. After what felt like hours, she started feeling weak... Her eyes closed slightly into a squint, struggling to keep them open as her balance of flight started to throw off course. She saw the ground mere feet below here, being nothing but a snowy plain of snow. She closed her eyes, trying to imagine warmth... Zarko's feathers... his warm, soft feathers on his big wings around her... The owl was so drawn out of reality that she didn't realize that she was still cold. She didn't even take note of the fact she was still flying further.

Now, her mind was all on Zarko, for some reason. She missed him, who could blame her? And she'd only seen him once before they were separated again.

Letting out a warm sigh of happiness, she isolated her mind from all else around her, nothing interrupting her thoughts.

_"It'll be alright, dear..."_ Zarko told her, keeping his feathered wings around her full mass. _"Everything will be alright... I won't let anything hurt you."_

"Z-Zarko...?" She gave a weak gasp, silent as the wind. "I-is that you?"

_"Shhh..."_ The voice sounded echoey, like a dream, but he was there, and she could feel him against her, in a hollow.

"I... I'm cold..."

_"I know..."_ His feathers got tighter against her, making her churr with happiness, getting warmer. Strange... No matter how close they were, she got warmer, but was cold at the same time.

"Am I hu-hurt?" Valcia rasped out in a small and high-pitches voice.

_"Shhh... Yes... Now shut up and save your strength, you need to rest..."_

Zarko never used such phrases as "shut up" in a mean way, he usually did it to show how important that it was. The female owl finally realized that her eyes had been closed the whole time, and hadn't taken one look at him. She let out a small laugh, both at herself and what Zarko said in a playful manner. A smile crept over her lips and beak, and slowly blinked her eyes open- very slowly. Her vision was greeted with a bright, golden light, blocked by the head of all she held dear, but still blurry. Blinking her eyes, she defogged them to get a better look, seeing the same sight of the head, partly see-through, and behind that wa-

CRASH!

Before Valcia think anymore, she felt a pair of talons ripping across her sides and clinging as they plumbed to ground, causing her to cry out in surprise and pain. Thankfully, she had a cushioned landing from the many inches of snow, but rolled across. She was laying motionless in pain, her life flashing before her eyes. Valcia heard many owls land behind her, getting ready to finish the job. She clenched her eyes shut, waiting as she heard the blizzard whirl past her ear slits and the steps of one of the owls approaching her.

_'...No.'_ Her mind told her. _'I will NOT die! Not here!'_

A sudden courage took over her, and she jumped up as she twirled around, her bare talons striking straight into the face of one of her attackers. The owl screech and flew backwards in pain, three, bloody talon marks across his cheek. Valcia got into an attack stance, eyeing all of them. They were Tytos, from what she could see, and all wore silver masks except for the one she attacked, who seemed to be the leader. Pure Ones.

Valcia grunted, her blood boiling from the sudden action and no longer feeling cold, but still weak. She breathed heavily, eyeing them all. She counted about five or six of them. Her eyes fell to the middle leader when he churred with a smirk.

"We've been tracking you down for the past few days, and you aren't an easy one to stay with. Nyra really has been itching to get you. Why is not our business, but we'll kill you if forced... But we can lie later about it and go ahead and take care of you for ourselves, since we're in need of some killing."

"I pity you, you know. You were at the brink of death yet you still insist on fighting us when we outnumber you greatly."

This set them off. The owl furthest to her left flew at high speed towards her, ready to kill. Valcia's instincts kicked in and quickly jumped off to her left, barely evading and getting up again to see another charging head first, but she flew a little in the air and fell to him, her talons impaling his flesh beneath the feathers in the back of his head, surely killing him.

When she landed, Valcia noticed two more incoming on the side, one of them being the leader. She had mere milliseconds to react, deciding to dive down and flip under the two, grabbing their feet and pulling them down, causing both to pummel into the snow.

Quickly, Valcia got up and turned her head, but was met by a curled-up foot the knocked her turning again, and down into the snow. Struggling to get up, her body shook of pain and cold. But no fear. She could see the snow turning read with the blood leaking from her beak. Glaux, it hurt...

Barely holding in, she screamed in pain as a pair of talons dug deep within her back, picking her up and tossing her a foot across the ground, causing her to roll through the white. Suddenly, the snow started to hurt. Every last flake that collided with her feathers she'd felt like a cannonball.

Her senses kicked up with a spark, using every last ounce of her strength to turn her head in a 180 degree angle and swipe her claws at the neck of the next attacker, blood spraying across her face, talons and the area of where her attack landed. She looked up to the owl's face, and saw that it was the captain whom she'd scarred a moment ago. He gasped for breath, but chocked on the red that he leaked, taking time to fall on the ground as he attempted to keep off the ground. But she didn't waste a second watching this occur. Instead, she stumbled to her feet, bleeding from the cold snow that they stood in.

Upon getting up to her full height, her vision blurred when she looked over the remaining... Three, four? It was hard to tell with the sight she was getting, especially with the blizzard blowing in between them. However, at the same time she got up her balance threatened for her to fall to her left, making her push her burning, swollen legs quickly back under her.

Weakly, she fell to her knees, looking down at the red snow below her. So... This was it... This was how it was going to end for her- no goodbyes, no one to comfort her... Until a screech pierced through the air. Valcia shot her head towards the sound, and saw the remaining Pure Ones being attacked by another four, in different shapes and colors, but it was hard to make them out through the blizzard. Her world turned black as the ground came to her head.

_"Just relax..._"

Zarko spoke in a calm voice in her head, soothing like a father telling a bedtime story. She glanced up to see an owl in front of her once she regained sight for a moment. This owl, though, was tiny! Very small... An Elf Owl? She started to speak.

"Soren! She's still alive, but she won't last long!"

Valcia blinked very slowly.

"Gylphie, look at her wounds, try and keep her stable. Digger, find a nearby cave, anything to get us out of the cold. Twilight, come with me!"

She blinked again, and slowly closed her weak eyes.

_"Just sleep..."_

* * *

><p><strong>I got the idea of the flashback of Zarko after playing and beating Metro: Last Light about two months ago, and I loved it... just, loved it. I'm planning on reading the novel sometime even.<strong>

**So, here's one thing that I really want... I want someone to create a book cover for this story, or some sort of fan-art! After looking, this is now the biggest Guardians of Ga'Hoole Fanfic there is, and I'd like to make it even bigger! I've talked to a few people irl and they love it, and I've grown a big desire of celebration and to show how much I'm proud of this, and so thankful for all who made this become what it is! I was in a dark hole for a long two years of my life, and suddenly I've climbed out, and I have never, NEVER felt so thankful to be alive!**

**Next, I'd like to announce that I also have planned out another story based off of this one. But it contains MAJOR spoilers for the rest of this story, so I can't talk too much about it yet! Just a heads up! I'm working on a teaser chapter, though!**


	29. Chapter 29

Zarko sighed as he looked out his hollow at the sunrise. Alcrus, Reiden and Uglamore hadn't returned yet, and now he'd become slightly curious as to where they were. Kludd and Thora had arrived several hours ago, but no sign of anyone else. His closed his eyes slowly, his mind quaking. He was disturbed by something, yes, but one could not tell what exactly. His breathing became slow with relaxation. His body was still, unhurt, but his mind was filled with thoughts, yet calm. No, he was not worried about the others: He knew they could pull through whatever they'd run into. So what was wrong? It certainly wasn't worry, nor fear.

Zarko opened his eyes and walked away from the sky, picking up a feather, dipping it in a small bowl if black ink and looking to a blank parchment in front of him. Slowly, he brought the end of his writing utensil to the blank sheet:

_"You're born on the inside, when you die on the outside."_

"Life starts when you learn to live, pick yourself up, and treat each day as a gift."

"Everything's wrong, so how does one carry on?"

"Earn your chance to move on, leave your sins behind you, and change the way you've lived for so long."

He just kept writing these lines continuously, not much of a reason behind it. Some things he just needed to get out of his head. But... Why was his head so filled? He didn't know. The owl just wanted to. Focus on his own words and not the ones in his head. They were memories of the past, the voices... But they also seemed like Arctus's. Zarko couldn't tell. Nothing made sense anymore.

"Zarko." A soft voice came from behind. He had to resist the urge of whirling around in attack stance when he knew it was none other than Alterran. Something in his head clicked, and he slowly turned his body to face him halfway, but his head fully. His dear brother wore just his battle claws, but not his mask.

"Alterran..." Zarko hushed under his breath. He said nothing more, just blinking in a daze as the other approached.

"What's bothering you, brother?" Was the response, making them both blink. "I know that something isn't right. We all know it- well, maybe not the four, but you get the point."

He couldn't help but blink again, thinking on this. For the first time in too long, he couldn't decipher the difference between fact and fiction. His vision suddenly blurred over the one in front of him, unable to see clearly. What was happening to him? Zarko closed his eyes for a long while. He felt like it was years, but soon enough opened them, and was surprised when he found himself perched outside next to Alterran. Everything flowed clearly now.

"I..." He was lost. At a loss of words. He took a moment to grip them in a line as his brother placed a wing on his back. "My mind is dying. I'm losing my sense of emotions, thoughts... I've gone too long without peace. Recent events have only angered me. What do I feel, now? Misery. Despair. Agony. Everything is cloudy, and I can't open up my thoughts." He finally turned to Alterran, "Even if we succeed, I'll still be war scarred. It's what I was born unto, and there's no avoiding it."

Alterran, for one, was quiet. He listened closely to every word that was spoken in that deep, calm voice. In all honesty, he was rather surprised that Zarko opened up so easily. Though he knew that this conversation was far from over. "Brother... I don't know what to say..."

"Don't say anything."

"...We can fix this."

"No, we ca-"

"Yes, was _can_, brother."

"Alt..." Zarko whispered, turning to him and looking away from the sunset.

"Stop, Zark. After this is all over, me and the rest will help you adjust to peace, all of u-"

"None of you will be around."

Now Alterran was speechless. He felt his blood stop flowing for a second, body growing cold. It took a moment to start up again and he came back to reality.

"You don't mean..."

"I saw the future. Everyone was dead. The Great Tree was destroyed. There were pikes everywhere... Each one with a body of someone against Arctus. You, our brothers, the chosen four, Soren, Coryn... It goes on... Flames were erupted, and I was the only one alive. That's a simple way to put it.

"It's not a dream, nor a thought of fear; it was a vision, Alterran. A vision of the future based off of the path of history that is being traveled right now."

"Are you suggesting we change our plans?"

Zarko was unsure of how he should answer this. If they continued like they were, then everyone would die. If they changed, then there would be the higher risk of failing and have a chance that things would fall apart. _'This,'_ He realized, _Is a life and death decision. Either way, Arctus still may win...'_

"...No. We continue as we have." The answer was clear. "The future knows what moves we'll make. So the vision was of whatever we turn out doing. There's no outdoing fate. But we can make the last second turn." Now he turned to Alterran. "Brother, I hate to risk everyone's lives. I'd trade my single life for all of you..."

"Don't kick yourself, Zarko." Alterran seemed to smirk, which caught Zarko off guard. The slightly smaller brother continued, "I don't know about the four, but Alcrus, Reiden and I would die for the chance for us to succeed, and that's no exaggeration. A life that was worth living is one that makes it worth dying for."

Zarko exhaled deeply, eyes closed now in thought, his gizzard loosening up. "Thank you, brother... We'll survive this somehow, but we can't say how we can at the moment. It could kill us to do this, but like you said; a life worth living is one that's worth dying for." He wrapped a wing around his brother and pulled him into a soft embrace, patting his back before Alterran flew off, leaving him in silence once again.

Zarko didn't watch his brother leave. For some reason, he just couldn't bring himself to... But why? Maybe he was ashamed to watch after what he'd just issued for them to do, which may have resulted in the future with them dead. He had a chance to fix it, though he didn't. Zarko was right- the future knows whatever path they take, so no many how many turns, it'll all end the same. A burden of guilt weighed on his wings as he spread them to fly-

"Zarko?"

For a moment Zarko had a little déjà vu. Mere minutes ago his brother had spoken to him there in the same tone, yet it was a different voice. Time for some questions and answers again.

"Yes, Kludd?"

The Barn Owl had been under him- in the burrow which started in between the trunk and the ground. He could see him under, the white face and creamish-tan feathers standing out from his surroundings. "I... I need to speak to you."

The elder owl just nodded, motioning next to him. Kludd nodded back and flew up next to him, landing without a sound and looking out towards the lake. "Speak your mind, I'm curious, and I need the company."

"Well..." Kludd seemed to fall silent, staring off into the distance, as Zarko was, except he didn't seem to be paying much attention at the moment. Zarko decided that he'd need to think for a moment, so didn't say anything, instead looking in the same direction to gather his own thoughts. First off, would this plan of his really succeed more than it would fail? The vision was clear as the sky with the sun, but what all happened in it was cloudy as the rainy days. There was much work to be done if he was to decipher this. So much work in so little time!

Kludd's thoughts, however, were completely different from Zarko's. _'What really happened to Coryn? Was he born with that scar, or did someone create it himself? He looks so much like Nyra, but...'_ The Barn Owl shook his head. Several things were troubling him, and that was the least of them. _'What about... The war? Who will die, and how many? No, no no, I just need to ask him and stop worrying right now.'_

"Are... Are we in danger of dying soon? As in... The nine of us?" He seemed to include Valcia in there. "Any one of us at all?"

More silence came for a moment, until Zarko twisted his upper body to face Kludd for a moment, looking down at him for a moment with a mixed expression of feelings, before turning back to the sun. "You're worried."

"Yes."

"About Thora."

"Yes..."

"And if anything happened to either of you, it'd scar your relationship."

"Yeah..." Murmured Kludd, eyelids at half while looking down.

"You don't want that to happen... Do you?" Again, Zarko had turned to Kludd in the exact same manner.

Returning the gaze, Kludd found himself slowly looking down, getting the message slightly.

"Then you must do whatever is in your power to keep you both alive. As long as you fight, and kill without thought. There is no worse feeling that comes when you give thought to the ones you've killed or will kill. You'll be filled with guilt and regret, which will lead to depression. I may seem illogical giving such cold advice, but it's the best I can offer."

A slow and small nod came from Kludd as he thought this over. "What if... What if that doesn't help?"

"As long as you both survive, then you two can live and love. I'll do the best I can, but no promises."

They were both staring into the sun again, listening to the wind blow ever so softly.

"...Zarko?" Kludd whispered. "Can I ask you a more... Personal question?"

"Ask away..." Zarko's feathers seemed to wilf. "I won't mind."

"I really am curious... Tell me... What was your life like? Throughout your full lifetime?" Kludd knew that this question was a bit far-fetched, but he hoped that it'd help him understand.

The owl next to him fell quiet, and Kludd's vision faded into a blue blur. Somehow, he knew he was in Zarko's mind. It was like a dream! Eventually, the blue turned into clear, ocean water, and he rose out of it slowly to be greeted by the most beautiful and perfect sky he'd ever seen, and a grassy cliff with a figure that he couldn't make out carved into the edge. A four-legged creature ran out and on top of the statue at the furthest point- a wolf, that's what it was, and a large one on top of that. Sleek, grey fur, not a thing wrong with it. He was in much better shape than any of the Dire Wolves of the Beyond, and Kludd knew what he was seeing was no where close to the owl world. This was concluded right as he howled into the air, and a light blinded him.

When his sight came back, it was snowing- white crystals covering the statue, the hill, though the water frozen below him. It was just like his vision the previous morning, but different somehow... On top of the statue, he saw that the wolf was no longer a wolf, but instead a... What WAS that? It seemed like a giant lizard, a black and blue one, with horns and wings... It was outstanding, probably far beyond the owl knowledge! Zarko definitely knew a lot.

As they drew closer, and higher, the oversized lizard had been looking at them, but then jumped in the air, flying gracefully elsewhere, Kludd being only more awestruck. While watching, he noticed that it was probably double the size of the wolf he just saw. Then it hit him... Was the wolf the same thing as this creature? Same living essence?

"Let me take you higher... Something that no owl has seen before..."

Suddenly, Kludd saw Zarko next to him, but they started to elevate as they flew. Kludd struggled to flap, trying to keep up with his superior, then took a glance at him. He was standing in thin air and flew up by Kludd, who blinked and slowly set his feet down, and was... Standing on an invisible force? He didn't argue, but now he took in his surroundings. Everything was growing slightly darker. Looking down, the land was rapidly getting smaller. Soon enough, they were out of Earth... A round sphere, water and land, but it was shaped nothing like the Hoolian Kingdoms on the maps. Objects passed them as they sped up- the moon, more planets in all different sizes, floating rocks! He'd already been speechless, and looking once again to Zarko, he could see a content smile. Rarely did he smile.

Kludd looked down as they slowly descended further... Further and further from Earth... Home. He felt his life suddenly by his eyes, his heart tightening. Soon enough, there was a swirly form in front of them. A large orb of light was in the middle, and curved lines circling it.

"What... What is this...?" The Barn Owl asked in awe, his eyes shinning the reflection.

"Where we are. Many refer to this as, 'The Milky Way.' You're the first owl to see such a thing." Zarko was staring straight at it. He, too, was mesmerized.

"So that's the sun- in the middle?" Kludd never thought that the sun was so... Big! It was incredible!

"...No. The sun that we all know is here-" He pointed his wingtip to a small light that formed one of the swirls, "-which is around where we are."

Silence. No sound was heard to Kludd, yet he couldn't tell whether Zarko heard anything or not. The smile was as if he did, though, or did he just enjoy the silence? Maybe he was just smiling to the sight. Kludd couldn't tell, but he didn't ask. There was no reason to.

"What you see as all of these lights are stars... And the light in the middle is the biggest and brightest. Every star you see is a sun, one very far away. Believe it or not, Glamoura is even further than this..." Zarko said the last part quietly, his smile fading and lowering his head a bit, "So far..."

For the first time, it occurred to Kludd what all Zarko had been through. Since the beginning of time... All of the people he met, dead from any cause... How could one live with so much loss of grown love, and keep fighting strong? Zarko wasn't normal, that was clear. He was stronger than any other being, not just luck to have survived. Fought to save, even though he knew how much the cost was. Though he could do whatever he could, yet he chose this. _'But why?'_

"Anyways, to answer your first question..." Zarko turned to him, grabbing his attention, "There's been a few enjoyable times in my life, but compared to dreadful times, not many. The purpose makes it worth living, though. It's most _definitely_ worth it. I don't doubt that. Life is beautiful." He paused for a moment, staring off into space (literally). "And so is yours, Kludd. You have Thora, which is the main thing right now. Also me, my brothers, Clay and Uglamore. Then soon enough there will be Soren, Coryn, Eglantine, and everyone else. You'll have a place to call home. Maybe not where you were born, but it'll still be home."

Zarko didn't know whether or not to believe his own words. Lying to him wasn't something he wanted, and it killed him, but right now any negative bring-ups would do no good. He had to lie for the greater good. Not a choice for him. Though, looking down at Kludd, he brought himself to smile. Maybe they all would die, but at least he gave them something to enjoy in life.

"Now... I assume you want to know something else? About your family?"

Kludd nodded.

"Aye... Ask, then; I'll answer."

"Wh... Why do Soren and Coryn see me as the enemy still, and don't give me a chance?" Kludd had his head cocked to the side when asking this. Zarko turned back to him, almost quirking a brow in curiosity.

"They want to talk to you, trust me, but they aren't sure. It truly is shocking to see someone whose death was witnessed by many, showing up one day in their home. Remember, though; you had a blood-stained past, and that's what they see you as. We can change that, if we try hard enough- and we will. Kludd, it's a 'pick your battles' decision. The Tree sees you as an enemy, but your son and brother aren't sure- Eglantine, I'm unsure- if you are what you were or not. If they chose to let you walk in like that, the Tree would worry, maybe attack all three of you. Our chance to prove otherwise is close... I can feel it..."

He put a talon suddenly on Kludd's back- right on the scar.

"To show that this scar is not yours, but a demon's."

* * *

><p>Valcia awoke with a start, gasping for breath, but grunted in pain as she clenched her eyes shut. Someone put a foot to her side and softly pushed her back to the cave wall, and her eyes weren't open to see the owl. Right now her focused on the many wounds in her body, pressing her talons around cut in her side. It was bandaged. Suddenly, memory overflowed her mind.<p>

_'They... All... Know...'_ A voice seemed to speak in her mind. No, it wasn't her own- more like a hushed, rough and evil male voice that struggled to speak to her. It couldn't have been Zarko, like she heard in her head earlier. That had to have been someone else, no doubt, but who? Another realization dawned on her. _Who_ all knew? _What_ did they know? Was it her captors that knew who she was? She started to panic, her head filling with thoughts. The Pure Ones had her-

_'No, they don't...'_ That was what she told herself, as memory had gotten fully to her head. Someone killed them and rescued her, or was it really capture? _'Soren, Twilight, Gylphie, Digger... Why do those sound so familiar?'_

Suddenly she remembered the foot that'd just pushed her back. She was not alone. Realizing now that she was leaning back, almost laying down, she listened, and heard a crackling fire and faint blizzard. At last, her eyes opened, and Valcia found herself in a cave- _again._ What had been going on with owls and caves these past couple of months? Anyways, there was the blizzard outside the cave entrance, the same one shed just been in. What was in front of her, however, was the same Elf Owl she'd seen before blacking out. The little female bird flapped her wings in relief.

"Oh, you're awake, thank goodness!" Gylfie gave a slight smile. This elf owl was under half Valcia's size, but she was perched on a large mask, probably Twilight's, the Great Grey. Valcia smiled back softly, leaning up a little bit to where she could get a better look around but not hurt herself.

"Thank you..." Valcia gave a slow nod. Her voice seemed a bit more feminine and smooth than other's. She managed to return the smile, but weakly. Looking down at her own body, it'd been pretty clear that she'd been beaten quite badly. All of the bandages had been soaked in blood, but there was more of them that already had been changes somewhere next to her on the floor. She must've been taking care of her for at least an hour or two alone.

Gylphie cleared her throat, folding her wings, "How're you feeling?"

"I... I think I'm alright... I've taken worse." Valcia seemed to grin. It was the truth alright, but it seemed as if she meant to make a bit of a laugh. Gylphie did let out a small churr, but not much else.

"Well, that's good- that it's not too bad damage, that is... Which is, personally, a surprise considering how much blood you've lost." Owls were known for their light bodies. This wasn't just because of their hollow bones, but they also didn't have very much blood in order to keep them flying, so losing even a little would be dangerous. Normally, an owl would be constantly blacking out dizzy, but she wasn't. And for a good reason.

Valcia, Zarko, Alterran, Alcrus and Reiden's bodily systems were all unique. For some reason, their blood multiplied rapidly when a large amount is lost, which was a big lifesaver for them at countless times. It may have been part of their past of being created by Glaux, and although it seemed a little far-fetched, it was the only explanation.

"Where... Where am I? What happened?" Valcia breathed, making Gylphie hum.

"Northern Kingdoms, somewhere. We got a little confused in the blizzard, which is probably what happened to you. Right?"

Valcia nodded again.

"Ah, alright... How long do you think you were out there?" She tilted her head in curiosity. The larger owl blinked. She didnt even know.

"I don't know... I think for an hour or two-"

"Great Glaux!" The Elf Owl flapped her wings again as she exclaimed. "How could you survive that long in freezing weather while fighting a squad of Pure Ones five-to-one?"

"I'm an experienced fighter, thank Glaux, so I know how to handle myself in a fight." She paused. "It's not the first time my life has been around the talons."

"I see..."

"It's a long story though, would rather not get into it right now." Taking a quick glance around, she groaned, shivering slightly. "C...can you help me up? I need to get closer to the fire."

Blinking, Gylphie tilted her head. "We can try..."

The problem was, Valcia was much larger than poor little Gylphie. Lifting her up was going to be a bit of a challenge, no doubt. Then again, Valcia seemed a little light due to some of her blood not regenerating yet, believe it or not, a reasonable factor. That, and, she still had some of her strength. Besides, Gylphie must've lifted some heavy things before, right? Well... Heavy for her, not for anyone else.

They planned to work this out with Gylphie being under the base of Valcia's starboard wing and pushing her up. As Valcia started to stand and lean forward, a small grunt escaped her, Gylphie moving forward with the wing wrapped around her. Good progress was being made, no doubt, since her feet were almost planted almost flat on the rocky floor- which was the problem; she couldn't dig into rock.

It took a long minute of struggling for the larger bird to finally stumble up to her feet, almost falling forward in the process. Valcia had been giving heavy breathing as she ended up near the fire, staring into it while warming up, but when looking back to Gylphie, that poor Elf Owl was puffing her chest in and out for breath, but not too long later had stopped and got next to her.

"Much better... Lot warmer..." A whisper came from Valcia, quiet as a breath.

"Very..." Gylphie had seemed to have her beak chattering, wings out close to the fire. It hit Valcia that since she was smaller, she had less body heat it seemed. She gave small smile and lifted her port wing, the side Gylphie was on.

"Come over here."

Gylphie looked over, a little bewildered at the sudden offer. However, before she could say anything, a shiver went through her body, and she was under Valcia's wing in a second and it folded around her to where her head was popping out. "T-Th-Thank you..."

"Don't worry." A small churr seemed to come from Valcia. "Let's just warm up. Tell me, what's your name?" Of course she knew the answer.

"G-Gylphie..."

"Valcia. Glad to have met you in a time like this."

"I'm just glad that the others didn't leave me here alone... Otherwise I'd have have no one to talk to, and be freezing..."

Another soft churr came from Valcia. She, too, was pretty cold, but probably not as cold as her. They were both shivering, but it was hard to notice because they were together, movements combining.

It was the this moment when suddenly a shrill of an owl cackled through the air outside, making the duo snap their heads up. That was Soren, no doubt, especially considering the fact that the Barn Owl landed right outside the cave entrance, walking in with frosted wingtips and wet feathers. The first thing he did was approach the fire before looking to them both, then blinked. He was looking right at Valcia, now.

"Where's Gylphie...?" Although he seemed to be asking curiously, he also seemed like he was defensive, as if expecting that Valcia did something with her.

"Ahem..." The little Elf Owl spoke up from under the large wing. "Soren?"

Soren looked down to the voice, right at the point where her head poked out from the wing. "...Gylph? What in Hagsmire are you doing down there?"

The two pushed apart slightly and slowly. No matter what they'd been doing, it was still kind of awkward: A male owl, team leader and best friend if one of them, walking in to see his friend so close to another female owl they'd just rescued... Hah.

"W-We were just warming up, S-Soren..." The stutters could have been either the cold, or embarrassment. Either one worked. Maybe she just didn't want to get some... Unnecessary thoughts into his head. "Don't be alarmed; she was willing to keep me from freezing to death... She was concerned."

Soren blinked as they inched apart, but couldn't keep an amused grin off of his beak, churring silently before shaking his head. He was right at the fire to warm up himself, just across from himself. Suddenly, Gylphie came up to him with a small blanket, throwing it up and over his back. A small shrill came from him, properly wrapping it around himself.

Valcia noted something: "Wait... We had blankets?" She looked back at a pile of them- two warm, dry blankets.. "Why weren't we using them?"

Gylphie had come back beside her and pointed her wing at them, "Digger and Twilight are going to need them when they get back." The pointing shifted to where she was unconscious. "And we used mine to keep you warm while you were out."

She was right: The blanket was damp and crumpled. It then hit her that Gylphie took a big risk for her; her own warmth for another's she didn't even know. Valcia smiled to herself, then.

Thoughts were taken from her attention when she turned back to see two more owls landing in. She knew who this duo of a Burrowing and Great Grey was. Gylphie was getting them both blankets, and they seemed to have notice Valcia but didn't look directly at her.

A few moments of silence passed by, everyone around the fire. Gylphie was still next to Valcia, just not close under her wing. Soren, Digger and Twilight had dried off, so the blankets were left alone at the fire to dry off. Long silence had passed by as they watched the fire, no sound but the blizzard outside- which was calming down- and the crackling of the wood (it also occurred to Valcia that they'd brought the wood because they knew there would be none in these parts).

"What's your name?" Soren looked up to her curiously as the silence was broken, and Valcia blinked.

"Valcia... Not my birth name, but it's the name I prefer to use for now." She gave a short explanation, and Soren didnt seem to want to want to press further. None of them did. Clearing his throat, Soren mentioned:

"I'm Soren, uncle to the king of Ga'Hoole. I assume you've already met Gylphie here-" He gestured towards the Elf Owl. "And it seems she did a good job tending to your wounds, great. The other two here are Digger and Twi-"

"Twilight." Valcia finished for him, making all of the owls blink, and Valcia just blinked back in confusion, but then realization hit her.

"How do you know his name...?" Digger seemed to cock his head to the side.

Valcia swallowed unnoticeably. "I think I remember hearing about you some three years ago on a visit to the Great Tree. But back then, it was Boron and Barran."

After a moment, Soren, Digger and Twilight nodded, and again, Valcia copied their actions. However, she didn't notice the curious stare from Gylphie next to her.

Twilight suddenly was in front of Valcia, bowing gracefully to her. "Twilight at your service, mad'am." He must have been happy that she knew his name. "Yes, you may have heard of this famous singing warrior, the strongest in all of the Ga'Hoolian kingdoms." The Great Grey had seemed to lift one of her feet up to give a soft peck to it.

Valcia only smirked, with a small churr. "Thank you, Twilight. Just try not to bother my mate and you won't be planted in the ground."

Twilight blinked for a second, but before he could reply, Soren gave him a smack to the back of the head.

"Give her some space, Twi. It wasn't you alone she recognized, and I'd prefer not to have her spooked."

She shook her head, "No, no, it's fine. I've dealt with worse." Smirking, she looked back to Soren, "What brings you here?"

"Here? Well, we needed shelter, right?" Soren tilted his head.

"No, I mean here as in the Northern Kingdoms. I wouldn't expect the 'band' to come out here without a reason."

"Ah, I see..." He whispered, looking into the fire again before back up at her, "We were searching for someone, out here after getting some information."

"Information? From what?"

"That's... better left unsaid." Again he whispered, taking and stare at the fire. It was then Valcia remembered what Zarko had told her about this one- he had Starsight, and his cousin had Firesight. Suddenly, she pieced it together.

"And the one you're looking for...?"

"We... Well, we think his name is Zarko. The reason why is, again, better left untold."

Nodding, Valcia remained silent. It was good she came out here rather than him, then... Very fortunate.

A screech filled the air outside, and the five of them snapped their heads in the direction it came from- outside in the small blizzard that'd calmed a bit. It was dead silent for a few moments, but soon enough, they glanced at each other. Digger was the first to speak.

"Seems like another group of Pure Ones were out there," The suggestion was, "We shouldn't let them inform the rest."

Soren stood up, nodding. "Agreed. Digger, Twilight, we're headed out again. Valcia, Gylphie... I know you two are tired of sitting in here, but..."

"I'm wounded and Gylphie seems capable of watching me." Valcia replied, "I understand. Go get some Pure Ones for us."

Soren seemed to smile at this and nodded, then looked to the other two males, nodding again, and they returned it. They still had their gear on, thankfully. The three stood up and dropped the blankets, turning and walking out and flying off swiftly into the cold weather.

Once she watched Digger, Soren and Twilight leave, Valcia was turning around when she saw Gylphie giving her a... Suspicious, look.

"I need to talk to you." She spoke sternly. "In the past minutes I've gotten to know you, I could already see something a little strange. And I don't think I need to explain much as to why."

Valcia blinked. "Wha...?" Within herself, she started to think herself discovered, but she couldn't be certain. No, how could she ever have been noticed so quickly?

"You know..." Gylphie sighed, "You hesitated before answering about knowing Twilight's name. That, and, you couldn't have simply 'heard about us' at that time. We aren't really legends or anything that makes us so well known, especially then."

Valcia stared at her for a moment. She stared real hard. At last, she sighed: This owl was a pretty smart one, but it also meant she was trustworthy. Taking one last glance back, seeing that the three others weren't there, she backed up with Gylphie away from the entrance.

"Alright, alright... I need you to listen close, and listen well." The larger owl was looking right down at the Elf Owl, even bending to her height. "The one you were looking for, Zarko? Having Kludd and a few others at his side?"

Now it was Gylphie's turn to blink. "Friend of yours...?"

"Mate."

"Wha-?!"

Valcia covered her mouth with a wing, muffing her until the poor little owl became silent, then removed the wing to allow her to continue.

"I am trusting you not to say a bloody word to anyone, but I'll still answer to curiosity. Can you give me your word?"

Gylphie seemed to hesitate for a few moments, in confusion and wonder, before nodding. "Not a peep from me."

"Well then..." Valcia went back to the fire across from Gylphie. "What do you want to know?"

The Elf Owl got up to the fire with her. "Everything that answers what matters most."

Valcia sighed softly. "This might take awhile..."

* * *

><p><strong>Okay, I've been getting asked quite a few questions about this and a few other things, so I'll answer here... Yes: I am an RPer at some times . Most of the time I'm on the computer, I RP. I do all kinds of RP- Casual, dramas, story-driven, [u]anything[u]. Don't think I'm over-exagerating, because I'm not. If you want more details about that, PM me.**

**Next up, I need to mention- I already have the major plot points set up in my head. I already know Arctus and Zarko's fates, I know what the VERY last scene is going to be, etc. Although, do note that later in the future that there's going to be some more... Gripping, scenes. I can warn you that I got a few big shockers coming in later chapters.**

**Another thing that I'm really looking forward to- do you all know Taylor Mali, famous guy who performs his poems? For those who don't know him, look him up, very great and inspiring guy. Gonna be meeting him sometime in mid-February, really looking forward to it.**

**Anyways, I'm sorry everyone for the overdue update...**


	30. New Story is Up!

**Heya, everyone! Just wanted to post here to inform people that the re-written version of the story has been posted- chapter one, at least. Find it under my profile!**


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